Sr. Mary Delivers Her Annual Christmas Message

Living Our Core Values at Christmas and All Year Long

Sister Mary Persico, IHM, President, and members of the Marywood University community gathered recently to convey their hopes at Christmas–and all year long–through the expression of our cherished core values: Catholic Identity, Respect, Service, Empowerment, and Excellence. Christmas is the perfect time to remind all of us of the many gifts that come to us by living these values.

Sister Mary: Every year, I look forward to speaking with you at Christmas. Like everyone else, my perspective on many things has changed in this post-pandemic world. I have faith and hope that we have changed, and for the better. I have faith that we have a greater appreciation for what we used to take for granted–food, medicine, employment, and accessible healthcare in abundance, and, most of all, the feeling of being connected to a community of people. 

And so, this year, I come to you with a message from our Marywood community–our staff and faculty, and, of course, our students. With me, to share our hopes and wishes for you this Christmas season, is Marywood social work faculty member, Dr. Lia Palmiter; Marywood Campus Security Officer, Jeff DeAngelo, and Marywood Communication Arts student, Rubane Singh. 

At Marywood, we aspire to embrace and live our core values, and, while that is true throughout the year, I think Christmas is the perfect time to remind all of us of the many gifts that come to us by living these values. This year, my wish for you is that you seek and find the truth, goodness, beauty, and justice in our world, as well as a willingness to work together for the common good, not just within the context of our Catholic faith tradition, but through dialogue and service with persons of diverse faiths and viewpoints.

Dr. Lia Palmiter: My hope and wish is that each of us strives to honor the uniqueness and dignity of each human being, treating everyone justly and caring for our earth and all her creation, not just at Christmas, but always.

Jeff DeAngelo: I hope that we remember to do our best to serve others each day, not necessarily by big acts of service, but by sharing our gifts, whatever they may be, to help others. Even the simplest act could be an inspiration to others to serve as well.

Rubane Singh: As a student at Marywood, I know that my education will not only empower me to achieve my full potential professionally, but also empower me to use my talents and knowledge to live as a responsible citizen of the world. My wish is that we each remember the power that we have to transform lives by sharing our knowledge and gifts with others.

Sister Mary: Our final core value is Excellence. To us, this means the pursuit of the highest level of achievement. This Christmas, I hope that we will all seek to respect and serve each other at the highest level of excellence, and that we never forget that by living lives of service and empowerment, we help others to do the same. May every one of you have a Merry Christmas, and New Year filled with light, happiness, and peace. So, from our Marywood family to yours…

All: Merry Christmas!