One of first things that Monica Misey did after being named Director of Dehonian Associates was to reach out to province ministries to learn first-hand what they needed from her office.
“I was expecting to hear requests for bulletin content, posters, and other materials about Fr. Dehon, not leadership formation!” said Monica. But in province ministries increasing led by lay people, leadership formation – based in Dehonian spirituality – is something that many cited.
“As I spoke with people across our ministries, they were excited about leadership formation at all levels as a way of better integrating Dehonian spirituality in their work,” she said.
While there are many leadership programs throughout the country, none are grounded in Dehonian spirituality. “This is a wonderful opportunity to create leadership development that will foster the charism of Fr. Dehon for years to come,” said Monica.
During the past few months Monica has worked with a team of lay leaders “who are passionate both about exercising good leadership and about the Dehonian charism.” They include Dr. Julie O’Connor (Sacred Heart Seminary and School of Theology), Joe Tyrell (St. Joseph’s Indian School), and Andrea Vincent (Sacred Heart Southern Missions).
Under the umbrella of “The Dehonian Leadership Institute” the group hopes to offer several programs. The first is “LEAD.” Its mission is “to form spiritually grounded leaders who embody the Dehonian spirit of love and reconciliation,” said Monica. It is designed for SCJs and for collaborators across the US.
LEAD will kick off with a three-day pilot retreat for six to eight people in June. This will be followed by a fall retreat with 12 leaders from across the province. Cohorts will be invited back the following fall for the next progression, and a new cohort will begin at the first level. “Over the years, this will create a network of leaders across our apostolates and foster a sense of belonging to the wider Dehonian family,” said Monica. “Continued participation will be optional, but we hope that participants choose to continue because of the quality of formation.”
The pilot retreat in June will be held at Benet Lake Retreat Center in Wisconsin.
There will also be two skill-specific training sessions each year. Among the topics to be covered: critical conversation skills, time management, and listening skills. The skill sessions will be open to anyone serving in province ministries – including SCJs – not just those who are a part of the LEAD cohorts. The sessions are non-credit.
“As director of Dehonian Associates, I realize that while this project does not create new Dehonian Associate groups, it does meet many of Fr. Dehon’s initial objectives in establishing Dehonian Associates: providing formation, creating community, and bringing collaborators into the mission. I hope this can be of great value in fostering the Dehonian charism across our apostolates.”
For questions about the LEAD program, please contact Monica at [email protected] or 414-427-4267.
