Marymount honors the RSHM for 166 years of service in “Founders' Day” celebration, featuring special guest, Sr. Veronica Brand

Each year, Marymount celebrates Founders' Day to recognize and honor the work of RSHM founders, Pere Gailhac and Mere St. Jean for their dedication and service to others – this year we celebrate 166 years of our amazing Founding Order!

To honor this special day, we welcomed Sr. Veronica Brand, RSHM, to campus to speak to our girls about her work as the representative for the RSHM non-governmental organization (NGO) that works directly with the United Nations. The work of the RSHM NGO at the United Nations is focused particularly on female education and working to promote justice on behalf of the poor and marginalized, particularly women and children.  Sr. Veronica inspired us all as she told stories of what “service to others” truly means, noting that her favorite moments in her work with the UN have been watching these significant world leaders truly listen to, and give voice to, the poorest and most marginalized across society.
 
Sr. Veronica also generously shared her personal history with our students, explaining how the heart of the RSHM sisters inspired her when she herself was a student at an all-girls RSHM Catholic high school, albeit in Zimbabwe, not Los Angeles!  She also answered many of the thoughtful questions our students posed, helping them to focus on what they can do today – in both big and small ways – to engage with her work at the United Nations.
 
We sincerely thank Sr. Veronica for her time, her moving words and her inspiring passion – we cannot wait to have her back to campus soon, and are excited to see how our girls will put her words into action over the coming months!
 
More about the RSHM Founders' Day:
February 24 marks 166 years of history for the Religious of the Sacred Heart of Mary. Since 1849 our RSHM sisters have sacrificed, educated, served the poor and loved people they served across the world. Beginning as a small order in a small town, Beziers, in France, this lively order striving to work “so that all may have life” has touched the people of Los Angeles, New York, London, Paris, Brazil, Colombia, Portugal, Italy and many countries in Africa.  Today, there are RSHM schools around the globe, and students continue to benefit and thrive from the care and dedication of our founders, as the RSHM continues to carry out the mission that Mere St. Jean and Pere Gailhac set forth so many years ago.



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