LEGISLATIVE RESOLUTION commemorating the 100th Anniversary of the Maryk-
noll Sisters

WHEREAS, It is the tradition of this great Empire State and this Nation
to pay tribute to those institutions and individuals who have contrib-
uted to the ethical and spiritual values of society at large; and
WHEREAS, This Legislative Body is justly proud to commemorate the
100th Anniversary of the Maryknoll Sisters, to be celebrated with an
opening liturgy on Sunday, January 8, 2012 at the Maryknoll Sisters
Center in Ossining, New York; and
WHEREAS, Maryknoll was founded by the Reverend James Walsh of Boston,
Massachusetts, and the Reverend Thomas Price of Wilmington, North Caro-
lina, who met in 1910 at a conference in Montreal, Canada; the following
year they traveled together to Rome, Italy, and on June 29, 1911,
received Pope Pius X's blessing for the formation of The Catholic
Foreign Mission Society of America, now better known as the Maryknoll
Fathers and Brothers; and
WHEREAS, The Maryknoll Sisters of St. Dominic, or simply Maryknoll
Sisters, are a religious group of Roman Catholic women founded in Ossin-
ing, Westchester County, New York, in 1912, six months after the 1911
creation of the Maryknoll Fathers and Brothers; until 1954, when they
became a pontifical institute, the order was known as the Foreign
Mission Sisters of St. Dominic; the Sisters use the suffix "M.M." after
their names; and
WHEREAS, The order was founded by Mother Mary Joseph (nee Mary Jose-
phine Rogers), from Jamaica Plain, Massachusetts; she was a 1905 gradu-
ate of Smith College; and
WHEREAS, The Sisters profess the evangelical counsels and devote their
lives in service overseas; they currently have more than 500 members
from diverse cultural backgrounds serving in a variety of fields includ-
ing medicine, communications, education, agriculture, social services
and spiritual formation; and
WHEREAS, The Sisters serve the needs of the people where they are
missioned, in 30 different countries around the world; and
WHEREAS, Some of the schools the Sisters founded are the following:
Maryknoll Convent School in Kowloon, Hong Kong; Marymount Secondary
School in Happy Valley, Hong Kong; Miriam College in Quezon City,
Philippines; and Maryhill College in Lucena City, Philippines; and
WHEREAS, The Maryknoll Sisters stand on the threshold of tomorrow,
prepared to meet the challenges of the coming decades while retaining
that spiritual resolve which characterizes its past; and
WHEREAS, It is the custom of this Legislative Body to take note of
enduring religious institutions and to bring such institutions to the
attention of the people of this Empire State; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to
commemorate the 100th Anniversary of the Maryknoll Sisters, fully confi-
dent that this observance reflects the belief in those values which
enhance the dignity and purpose of life; and be it further
RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be tran-
smitted to the Maryknoll Sisters.