Women’s HERstory

Women's History postersWomen’s history (or HERstory) is an important topic here at the Catherine McAuley Center. An extraordinary group of women, the Sisters of Mercy, founded our organization in response to community need. They were inspired by Catherine McAuley, who created a place of refuge in 19th century Ireland where women could be treated with dignity and gain meaningful employment skills. How appropriate, then, that following International Women’s Day on March 8 and during Women’s History Month the ladies of our Transitional Housing program were featured on a broadcast from KGAN CBS 2 about the life-changing impact healthy relationships with other women and with the community has on residents’ outlook for the future.

In the report, Jennifer Tibbetts, Transitional Housing Program Manager, says of the program, “We recognize that women are relational, which means that they will grow and develop and become the woman that they really, truly are through the connection that they have with others and the community, and so that’s what we do here at the Catherine McAuley Center.” Connection with others extends beyond the relationships among women in the program to connection with women’s history and an understanding of historical female influence.

Transitional Housing residents have celebrated women’s HERstory in recent weeks through trivia games about the influence of historical female figures and watching the film Standing on My Sister’s Shoulders, which details the many ways black women contributed to the Civil Rights Movement. The staircase and hallways of their living space are decorated with posters that serve as reminders of the great contributions made by women in history and that each woman in the program is capable of making today.

HERstory is also celebrated throughout the year at the Catherine McAuley Center, most notably at the annual Women’s Equality Day celebration in August, where the community is invited to speeches given by residents about their own journeys to independence. Stay tuned for details on this year’s celebration and take a moment to watch one resident share her story here.