Called to Action: A School Sisters of Notre Dame Central Pacific Podcast

Sister Anna Marie Reha, provincial councilor, and Kaitlyn Holdmeyer, communications manager, co-host Season 2 of Called to Action.  In this episode, you learn more about the hosts and explore the urgency of Season 2's theme, Gospel Nonviolence and Just Peace. For more information download this pdf: The centrality of Gospel Nonviolence.  Additional information can be found on our website. 

In this episode we talk to Megan Schnitker. She is an Indigenous traditional herbalist and founder of the Mahkato Revitalization Project. Her parents, Charles Wayne and Marla Bull Bear, have always been a strong foundation for her by providing Lakota teachings and traditions growing up. Her father is hereditary Chief Bull Bear of the Kiyaksa Band of Oglalas of Pine Ridge Reservation, South Dakota, and comes from a long line of traditional spiritual leaders and teachers. She is proud and humbled to be a part of a traditional family.

The final speaker for Season 1, Called to Action, is Megan Schnitker, Owner and Indigenous Traditional Herbalist, Lakota Made, LLC, a speaker during the 2021 Women's Leadership Luncheons in St. Paul, Minnesota.  Her Native American culture values taking care of the Earth, as the Earth takes care of them. In her ancestry, women leaders in the Lakota culture have strong connections to the land. She expresses the importance of a sustainability-centered existence and strives to be one with nature, in all her work.

The School Sister of Notre Dame (SSND) Central Pacific (CP) Province is celebrating their 10th Anniversary on June 12, 2021. The former Dallas, Milwaukee, Mankato (Minnesota) and St. Louis Provinces became one on June 11, 2011. Listen to Sister Debra Sciano, provincial leader, talk about the history of the CP Province as the former Milwaukee Province provincial leader and now looking forward to the future. 

Hear from Janette Monear, President/CEO of the Texas Trees Foundation, a speaker during the 2021 Women's Leadership Luncheons.  She is dedicated to creating livable and resilient communities through the use of trees, green infrastructure and sustainable design. She is a pioneer in urban forestry. 

In this episode, we interview Wanda Kolo. Wanda, a 2021 Women’s Leadership Luncheon speaker, has over a decade of experience in the sustainability sector, ranging from sustainable design to Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) consulting and serves as Saint Louis Zoo’s Director of Sustainable Operations and Construction Management.

In this episode we interview with Shannon Hauf, Senior Vice President and Head of Seed Production Innovation, Bayer Crop Science. Shannon talks about her childhood on the farm and why farmers are great protectors of the Earth.

The Living Earth Center (LEC) in Mankato, Minnesota, is a sponsored ministry of the School Sisters of Notre Dame. In this episode, we talk with Laura Peterson the director of LEC. Hear about the history of LEC and the important role a garden can play in the community. 

In this episode, we chat with Sister Jan Gregorcich, SSND, one of the founders of Global Partners Running Waters (GPRW). GPRW is a nonprofit with the mission to build and maintain intercultural relationships through collaborative partnerships benefiting rural and urban communities in Latin America.

We talk with Dr. Marissa Jablonski, Ph.D., Executive Director of the Freshwater Collaborative of Wisconsin. She is an accomplished water engineer, environmental advisor and plastics-reduction expert who has worked in more than 45 countries. She talks with us about what she learned from her failures, how we can live more eco-consciously and encouraging women in STEM fields.