Alumnae Chapel

We welcomed Gwyn Fisher, class of 1996 today. Gwyn is the executive director of MPact Memphis an organization tasked with engaging and empowering the local young, professional community to make a difference in Memphis. Gwyn's journey has taken her around the world and "back home," and she shared her passion for making Memphis the kind of city that we'd all be glad to come home to ...

Alumnae Chapel

We welcomed "home" Ellen Clark Moore, class of 1973. After being introduced by her niece, a current Sophomore, Ellen shared the story of her year spent as Maid of Cotton. She highlighted the "glamorous perks" of the job while telling the community about the privilege of traveling all the way around the world. Ultimately, Ellen encouraged her listeners to take risks, even to act on whims, so that they might push themselves to have new adventures.

Prayer

Offering the wisdom of two of my favorite spiritual writers, Anne Lamott and Mary Oliver, today's chapel was all about prayer. The "please and thank you" prayers described by Lamott and the "paying attention" prayers as told by Oliver. After a discussion of the simplicity of these approaches, we talked about the return of student-led prayers on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Tuesdays will be an occasion to call each girl by name throughout the year as we recognize birthdays, and Thursdays will provide a space to lift up the concerns of our community.
If you're reading this blog from "outside" the community, please remember that the school prayer asks for blessings for all our alumnae and patrons everyday!

Alumnae Chapel

We welcomed home Carmen Carson, class of 2003, for our second Alumnae Chapel. Carmen works in L.A. as an event coordinator for Wolfgang Puck, and she shared many funny moments and brushes with celebrities. More than that, though, Carmen reflected on the circuitous path that brought her to this current work, encouraging the girls to be open to all possibilities - even seemingly dead ends. Following her passion of cooking, instead of her major coursework in college led to a challenging and fulfilling opportunity. She shared that while she's not using her Biology degree, she is definitely using the organizational skills and stress management techniques she honed in her time at St. Mary's.
Her non-traditional work was entertaining to hear about, but her message was truly inspiring - follow your passion!

Not Your Typical Alum Chapel

Morgan Beckford '06 might have brought the walls down with her amazing voice today in chapel.  She sang three songs, delighting everyone and demonstrating her extraordinary talent.  Significantly though, she began by sharing her evolving story from dreaming of stardom to coming to appreciate that she had a passion for "educational outreach."  Morgan's purpose now seems to be to infect everyone she meets with love for song, and particularly operatic song.
If today is any indication, she's quite contagious.  Look out world!