The national assembly of the Ladies of Charity of the United States of America meeting in Bethesda, Maryland on Sept. 11-13, 2025 coincided with the 50th anniversary of the canonization of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, the first native-born citizen of the United States to be declared a saint. Mother Seton (1774-1821) – the foundress of the Sisters of Charity in the United States who established a school that set the foundation for Catholic parochial education in this country – was canonized in Rome on Sept. 14, 1975.
During the assembly, the Ladies of Charity walked in the footsteps of Mother Seton, making a pilgrimage on Sept. 11 to the National Shrine of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton in Emmitsburg, and throughout their gathering, they were encouraged to emulate the faith and virtues of that saint, following her example of hope and trust in God during the blessings and challenges of life.
The gathering’s theme, “Choose Hope,” was inspired by the Jubilee Year of Hope in the Catholic Church declared by Pope Francis, and by the life of Mother Seton, who said, “Faith lifts the soul, hope supports it, experience says it must, and love says… ‘let it be.’”
The assembly’s program booklet noted, “Hope was the fuel that kept Seton going, even in the face of adversity. She saw hope as a beacon of light that illuminated the path ahead, giving her the courage to keep moving forward.”
The Ladies of Charity began in 1617 in France, when St. Vincent de Paul, who is known as the “apostle of charity” because of his loving outreach to the poor, founded the Confraternity of Charity. They were joined by St. Louise de Marillac in serving Christ by quietly responding to the needs of the poor. St. Vincent de Paul founded the Congregation of the Mission, a religious congregation of men also known as the Vincentians, and along with St. Louise founded the Daughters of Charity religious congregation of women.
The first Ladies of Charity Association in the United States was established at St. Vincent de Paul Parish in St. Louis in 1857. Today the Ladies of Charity have 6,400 members in the United States and 200,000 members worldwide in 56 countries.
The group’s website notes that throughout the 400-year history of the Ladies of Charity, they have embodied the charism of their founder through daily prayer and personal service to the poor. The outreach of the Ladies of Charity includes serving in soup kitchens, food banks and homeless shelters; visiting the sick, aged and dying in their homes, nursing homes and hospitals; operating thrift shops to raise funds for emergency financial assistance; supporting women facing crisis pregnancies and domestic abuse; literacy programs and scholarships for youth; and advocacy for issues including immigration reform and care for the environment.
A saint’s legacy for today’s women
In a keynote address to the Ladies of Charity National Assembly on Sept. 12, Vincentian Father Joseph Agostino spoke on “Fanning the Flame of a Future Full of Hope in the Spirit of Mother Seton”. He serves as the executive director of the Vincentian Family Office located in Philadelphia.
“St. Vincent de Paul reminds us that God is the ultimate source of our hope,” he said.
Father Agostino noted that St. Elizabeth Ann Seton was a women of faith who relied on her hope in God throughout her life experiences – which included enduring the sickness and death of family members, the loss of personal wealth, the disapproval of family and friends when she converted to Catholicism, and the challenges of establishing the first religious community of women in the United States in rural Maryland.
“Mother Seton trusted that God was present in every moment of her life,” he said.
Offering the Ladies of Charity encouragement in their daily lives of faith and in their service to the poor, Father Agostino said, “Jesus is your focus, Jesus is your priority, the reason for your very being. Everything you do is in His Name. He is the very reason for what you do.”
The priest added that Mother Seton by her life and work set an example for the Ladies of Charity today. “We are to serve in hope, focusing on the kingdom (of God), and leaving everything in God’s hands,” he said.
The next day, the women attending the Ladies of Charity USA National Assembly gathered at tables to discuss the topic “St. Elizabeth Ann Seton: Her Virtues, Our Virtues.”
That morning, they reflected on how Mother Seton through times in her life was a caring mother, a grieving widow, a loyal friend, a searcher of truth, a courageous convert, a sorrowing mother, a steadfast religious and an inspired educator, who by her life of faith, love and service can be seen as “a woman for all women.”
In their discussions, the women reflected on how St. Elizabeth Ann Seton was a woman of conversion, of courage and of hope, who was always a seeker and lived her life in the light of eternity.
As the women summarized their table discussions, one woman said, “It’s up to us to do, to act, to bring hope to others.”
The women participating in the national assembly later adopted a resolution saying they “look to the virtues of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton as we vow to fulfill the mission of the Ladies of Charity (in) finding God’s will and path to holiness in our life and in our ministries… (and by) embracing a spirit of love, of charity and service to others.”
Also speaking at the national assembly was Tayde de Callataÿ, of Belgium, president of the International Association of Charities (AIC), the umbrella group for the worldwide Ladies of Charity which is the oldest lay association in the history of volunteering. She spoke on Sept. 13 on the topic, “We Build Together to Bring Hope to Life.”
De Callataÿ noted that the international network includes women from diverse cultures, languages and experiences, united and guided by the charism of faith and personal service to the poor inherited from St. Vincent de Paul. She said it is important for the Ladies of Charity to continue not only serving the poor, but to build bonds of solidarity with them and help them restore their place in society, and to address the root causes of poverty and to adapt their outreach to current needs.
“Let us not forget that our mission is to support our brothers and sisters so that they can transform their lives and become protagonists of their own existence. Let us always keep opening ourselves to change to be bearers of hope!” De Callataÿ said.
During a question-and-answer session, she encouraged the Ladies of Charity to lean on their faith in their daily lives and in their outreach. “You are never alone. The Lord is always with us,” she said.
Also during the assembly, Vincentian Father Ron Hoye invited the Ladies of Charity to participate in “The God Minute,” an online daily prayer group at www.thegodminute.org.
Ladies of Charity reflect on their work
At the opening session on Sept. 12 at the Bethesdan Hotel, Irene Siedlarczyk, the president of the Ladies of Charity of the United States of America, convened a roll call of the nearly 200 participants from dioceses across the country.
Before that session convened, Nicole Bozman – a member of the Ladies of Charity in Calvert County, Maryland and a parishioner at St. Anthony in North Beach – stood beside a display showing the outreach of their Junior Ladies of Charity group. Those young women in grades 6-12 are involved in service projects at a local nursing home, make baked goods for local law enforcement officers, and march in a Christmas parade promoting the Ladies of Charity food pantry at St. Anthony’s Parish.
“I hope that they learn the joy of sharing God’s love in the community through service to others. It’s something they will never outgrow,” she said.
Bozman, who works as a school secretary at Sunderland Elementary School in that county, said she joined the Ladies of Charity after being inspired by the “generosity and selfless giving” of the women serving at the food pantry.
“We’re all called to be saints. When you join a group founded by a saint, you can join the saintly mission of serving the poor,” she said.
That morning, Charity Ezeani sat at a table with other member of the Ladies of Charity from St. Matthias the Apostle Parish in Lanham, Maryland. Ezeani, who works as an accountant, was also inspired to join the Ladies of Charity after witnessing their outreach at her parish, which includes operating a food pantry, visiting local nursing homes and supporting St. Ann’s Center for Children, Youth and Families in Hyattsville, Maryland.
“I watched the ladies as they served in the church, and it touched me,” she said. “The ladies, they really care about the people that they serve.”
Ezeani smiled when it was pointed out that her first name is Charity. “I derive satisfaction in making a difference in other people’s lives… That’s what moved me to do the work they do,” she said.
Una Murphy, a St. Matthias parishioner who is a retired nurse, said she is grateful to join the Ladies of Charity in their outreach. “It gives me a chance to be useful to others in the community in my retirement,” she said.
Fellow parishioner Julie Gill, who is a retired teacher, said being a member of the Ladies of Charity “keeps me busy. I see people needing help, and I would like to help all the time.”
That point was echoed by Zeny Juanitez, a St. Matthias parishioner and retired accountant who serves as the finance secretary for the Ladies of Charity there. She volunteers with the group’s food pantry, which includes vegetables from a garden on the parish grounds.
“I get a feeling of satisfaction sharing God’s grace with the needy,” Juanitez said. She added, “You can see the happy faces when you hand them the bags of food.”
During a question-and-answer session at the assembly after Father Agostino’s talk, Dr. Ellen Taylor from Holy Comforter-St. Cyprian Parish in Washington noted that she is a descendant of enslaved ancestors. “It (hope) got us through slavery, Jim Crow, segregation and here today,” said Taylor, who has a doctorate in business administration and management and works as the director of strategic planning for the American Chemical Society. She added, “Four hundred years later, I still have hope that the world will be better for all of us.”
Ladies of Charity interviewed on Sept. 13 said they drew inspiration from the example of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton.
“She taught all women… we can do it if we see the need, there’s nothing that can’t be done,” said Mary Cay Murray from the Dallas area. Murray, who has continued serving others after the death of her husband, has volunteered with a Ladies of Charity thrift shop, which sells clothes, furniture and other items to support the group’s ministry to the poor.
“It has been second-nature for me to reach out and help somebody,” said Murray, a lifelong Catholic. She added, “I love Mother Seton… She taught me to move on, keep moving.”
Deidre McCalaster, a member of the Ladies of Charity at Mount Calvary Parish in Forestville, Maryland, who works as a manager at a homeless shelter, said Mother Seton’s example inspires her to “step out on faith, like she did.”
That afternoon as the women at the national assembly discussed the virtues of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton and how she relied on faith and hope, Paulina Velez, a member of the Ladies of Charity from Miami, said, “Right now, our nation is in dire need of hope.”
In an interview, Velez praised the Ladies of Charity and their spirituality and outreach, saying, “It’s a way of living to fulfill the mission of God for His kingdom through the spirituality of St. Vincent de Paul, which is encountering God in those in need.”
She said the ministry of the Ladies of Charity in the Miami area includes serving immigrants, helping them with food, housing and with educational resources for youth.
Velez, who is an immigrant from Ecuador, said she also draws inspiration from the life and legacy of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton. “She was able to put everything in God’s hands… She always trusted in Divine Providence for herself and to help others,” Velez said.
Opening and closing Masses
At the assembly’s opening Mass on Sept. 12, Vincentian Father Richard Gielow – who has served as the national spiritual advisor for the Ladies of Charity in the United States since 1987 – encouraged the women to place their hope in God.
In an interview the next day, Father Gielow noted, “The heart of Vincentian spirituality is the Eucharist. The Eucharist is the sacrament of life and love. You take the love of Jesus and try to bring life to people.”
Praising the outreach of the Ladies of Charity, he said, “Their commitment is to the Lord… They see what Mother Teresa said, they see the face of Jesus in the poor. They give them hope, because their focus is on the Lord.”
Celebrating the closing Mass at the Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle for the Ladies of Charity USA National Assembly on Sept. 13, Cardinal Wilton Gregory, an archbishop emeritus of Washington, also praised the group for its outreach.
“The Ladies of Charity visiting Washington remind us all of the world’s need for tenderly caring for the poor, those whose everyday crosses are so burdensome that they could not bear them without the aid of others,” the cardinal said.
Cardinal Gregory said the Ladies of Charity offer a reminder of the charisms of Vincentian life in the Catholic Church. “In many ways, they are the glowing embers of the burning charitable hearts of Saints Vincent de Paul and Louise de Marillac,” he said.
Next year’s national assembly of the Ladies of Charity of the United States of America will be held Sept. 10-12, 2026 in Miami.
For more information on the Ladies of Charity USA, go online to https://aic.ladiesofcharity.us/.
