A few things you should know about the Sisters of Dame de Namur
- The Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur are named for the Belgian city, Namur. In the early days of their congregation, the Bishop of Amiens tried to restrict the Sisters’ work to their local area. Julie disagreed with him, believing they should share God’s word across nations, so she searched for a bishop who supported her vision. The Bishop in Namur gave this support. As a gesture of gratitude, the name Namur became part of the title and the Sisters moved their headquarters to Namur.
- In 1844, the Sisters expanded their service to North America. First, a group travelled to Cincinnati, Ohio and then three years later, a second group sailed from Europe around South America to Oregon to work among the Indian people.
- The Sisters started Notre Dame Mission Volunteers – AmeriCorps in 1992 to add to resources in underserved areas. One of these teams is based in Apopka with the Hope CommUnity Center.
- Each February, the Sisters of Notre Dame also remember Sister Dorothy Stang who was assassinated in Brazil in 2005. She stood with the indigenous Amazonian people in their struggle against the logging companies who took the people’s land and exploited the natural resources. Dorothy was shot to death while solitarily walking to an early morning activist meeting, but the light that she shared with the people has not been extinguished.
