Ursuline Sisters pass halfway mark in $10 million anniversary campaign CANFIELD — The Ursuline Sisters of Youngstown announced Thurs., Sept 26 they’ve raised just over half of their $10 million Fullness of Life, Future of Hope campaign goal. The campaign marks the Sisters’ 150th year of ministry in the Mahoning Valley and provides for the Sisters’ future and that of their important ministries.Sister Mary McCormick, general superior of the Ursuline Sisters, Brigid Kennedy, pres. and CEO of Ursuline Sisters Mission, and Taylor Cene-Acharya, Ursuline Sisters Assisted Living administrator, spoke to reporters at a press conference carried live on Facebook.Sister Mary offered the following comments:The Ursuline Sisters of Youngstown have just celebrated our 150th Anniversary of ministry in Youngstown. Since 1874, over 200 women have given their entire lives in service.There are currently 26 Ursuline Sisters of Youngstown. Our median age is 81. Nevertheless, most Sisters are involved in some sort of ministry for God's people, mostly volunteer.Most entered the Ursuline Sisters when they were 17 or 18 years old. In all their years of ministry -- in some cases 70+ years -- they have earned a modest salary and turned every cent of it over to the religious Community. The religious Community, in turn, has taken care of the needs of the Sisters, such as housing, food, education, medical care, etc. We will continue to do this for the rest of our lives.Despite good financial stewardship over many years, the Ursuline Sisters know that their funds will run out before the number of Sisters runs out. Now we’re turning to our friends and neighbors to enlist their support.We are seeking a total of $10 million in our Fullness of Life, Future of Hope Campaign.The Sisters have three goals for this campaign:1. Care of the Sisters: As long as any Ursuline Sister is alive ($4 million).2. Program Support: The programs of Ursuline Sisters Mission are thriving and vital to the people of the greater Youngstown area. We want to provide funds to continue these programs. The work of Ursuline Sisters Mission furthers the legacy of the Ursuline Sisters themselves ($3 million).3. Capital needs: We are in the process of renovating half of the Ursuline Motherhouse to be a licensed Assisted Living facility. This renovation includes a fire suppression system and capturing some other space for additional suites. This facility will not only provide housing for the Ursuline Sisters, as it has since 1963, we will open the facility for others who are seeking Assisted Living ($3 million). About the Ursuline SistersIn 1874, Youngstown was a budding industrial town, filled with immigrants but few teachers. A priest at St. Columba Parish asked his sister, an Ursuline Sister of Cleveland, for help. She arrived with a small group of nuns Sept. 18, 1874, and the Ursulines’ ministry in the Mahoning Valley began.At one time, all Sisters were educators. Thousands of students benefited from their care and educational expertise at parochial schools throughout the Diocese of Youngstown, including at Ursuline High School, Youngstown, which the Sisters founded in 1905, and at YSU.Today they serve as teachers, at the Dorothy Day House, volunteer with organizations such as Meals on Wheels, the Ohio State Penitentiary and other ministries to the poor, in area parishes, and in prayer. Their lives are enriched through community and service to others.Their nonprofit, Ursuline Sisters Mission, maintains the vibrancy of their major programs, including Beatitude House, Ursuline Sisters HIV/AIDS Ministry, Ursuline Sisters Senior Living, Ursuline Sisters Scholars, Immigrant Outreach and Ursuline Education &Wellness Center. Some Sisters serve with these programs as well.The Ursulines were founded by St. Angela Merici in Italy in 1535.You can watch the full press conference here.