Theoretically,
summertime is “off-season”, but here at the Institute this summer, things have
been decidedly “on!” First, we have welcomed two new people into our central
corps—Mary Ann Gurol, who has graciously offered to donate twenty hours a
week of her time to serve as our Parish Liaison, and someone,
coming on staff as our Administrative Assistant, filling in for Sherry
Curp, Office Manager, when Sherry goes on maternity leave; her baby is due
in mid-November (another lay apostle is born to the world!)
Also,
we now have a new website, thoroughly updated and improved by the
tireless labor of Catholic computer geniuses Mars, Nino, Titania, and Toby.
(Same address: www.siena.org.)
We
have also made the exciting discovery that Sherry Weddell’s November 1996
address to the Western Dominican Pastoral Conference, which sparked
Province-wide interest in and commitment to the lay apostolate, has been
translated into Polish on a Polish Dominican website! (In Polish: www.optimus.wroc.pl/dominik/b02114.html;
in English: www.siena.org/library/laycath.html.)
In
other international news: our materials are now being put to use in South
Africa! One parish was expecting participants from all denominations to attend
their first workshop. The head of the Department of Evangelization has also
agreed to promote gifts discernment using our program in his travels around the
diocese.
Speaking
of computers, we have recently completed GIFT TRACKER, a new software
program designed to help parishes track and foster the spiritual gifts of their
parishioners.
The
Institute hosted training workshops for teachers and interviewers in San
Francisco and Seattle this summer, both of which were well-attended and very
successful.