On September 17, 1860 Emma Taft ran up the Mount in Reading to be the first student enrolled at Mount Notre Dame Academy.
As MND begins its 150th year on Thursday, September 17, 2009, Mount Notre Dame’s heritage of spirit, tradition and success celebrated by MND students; faculty and staff; alumnae; current and past parents; Board of Trustees; representatives from nearly 50 parishes represented at MND; community leaders and friends of Mount Notre Dame in a festive Mass, celebrated by Archbishop Dennis M. Schnurr at St. Peter in Chains Cathedral at 9:45 a.m.
“It is so appropriate that we gather as a faith community for a Mass of thanksgiving at the Cathedral of St. Peter in Chains, the Mother Church of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati with Archbishop Daniel Pilarczyk as celebrant. MND graduates from as far back as the 1930’s will join MND’s students and current and past staff members. We will celebrate God’s past and present blessings to MND, and we will ask God’s gifts of wisdom and creativity as MND plans for the future,” said Mount Notre Dame President Sr. Rita Sturwold, SNDdeN.
The Mass was the ‘kick-off’ to a year filled with anniversary celebrations including MND’s presentation of best-selling author and nationally-renowned speaker Amilya Antonetti’s Broken Cookie Workshop on September 19th, an Anniversary Ball this winter and a weekend-long All School Reunion next September to wrap up the anniversary festivities. The entire Mount Notre Dame community is so proud of this extremely impressive milestone.
“150 years of providing young people with an extraordinary Catholic education at Mount Notre Dame! What a privilege it is to have educated over 8,000 young people in the tradition of the Catholic Church and of the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur who founded Mount Notre Dame just before the Civil War. What a testimony of vision, courage and generosity on the part of those who have contributed to this educational process over these many years,” said Sr. Sturwold.
For more information on any of Mount Notre Dame’s anniversary events, please contact Jenn Sennett, Director of Marketing and Communications.
Photos: Several of the parish representatives for MND’s 150th Anniversary Celebratory Mass at
St. Peter in Chains Cathedral are pictured with President Sr. Rita Sturwold, SNDdeN, in alphabetical order: Jackie Becker ’10, Kara Brinkmann ’10, Abby Fenton ’12, Mary Kate Fowler ’13, Laura Hendrixson ’12, Sara Kuhlman ’10, Avery Larkin ’11, Mary Lutz ’11, Gabby Maresco ’10, Reagan Willertz ’13, Katie Rieman ’12 and Carolyn Schwarz ’13.