Catholic Radio to honor founder of rapidly expanding order of nuns

Aug 2, 2004 / 22:00 pm

Michigan Catholic Radio will honor the cofounder and superior of an order of nuns that is growing by leaps and bounds with its Pillar of the Church Award this month.

The honor will be conferred to Mother Assumpta Long, cofounder and superior of the Dominican Sisters of Mary, Mother of the Eucharist, at Michigan Catholic Radio’s 6th anniversary celebration Aug. 19 at the Ford Community & Performing Arts Center in Dearborn.

At a time when most convents across the United States are being torn down, sold off or turned into assisted-living facilities, Mother Long’s convent, located on the outskirts of Ann Arbor, is bursting at the seams with nuns in full habit.

The Dominican Sisters of Mary, Mother of the Eucharist began in 1997 when Mother Assumpta and three other Dominican nuns asked New York's John Cardinal O'Connor to assist them in founding a new order. Seven years later, there are 44 members in the community.

Michigan Catholic Radio president John F. X. Browne says the young order is growing because of its fidelity to the Church.

Shortly after its canonical establishment, the Sisters of Mary accepted an invitation from Bishop Carl F. Mengeling to teach in the Diocese of Lansing. The sisters administer and staff Spiritus Sanctus Academy with two schools – one in Ann Arbor, the other in Plymouth, Mich.

The event, which gets underway in the Ford's Dome Room at 5:30 p.m., will feature Raymond Arroyo as master of ceremonies, news director and lead anchor for EWTN.

Previous Pillar of the Church recipients include Mother Angelica, founder of the Eternal Word Television Network; Scott and Kimberley Hahn; Fr. John Hardon, SJ, and Adam Cardinal Maida.

Michigan Catholic Radio was founded in 1998 under the spiritual direction of the late Fr. John Hardon, SJ. It operates WCAR 1090 AM (Livonia-Detroit) and WOAP 1080 AM (mid-Michigan).