[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 90 (Wednesday, June 23, 1999)]
[Senate]
[Page S7541]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     TRIBUTE TO SISTER MARY REILLY

 Mr. REED. Mr. President, I rise today to honor Sister Mary 
Reilly, an important figure in social progress and education in Rhode 
Island for the past fifty years.
  Since joining the Sisters of Mercy in 1948, Sister Mary Reilly's 
mission has always focused on helping individuals of modest means meet 
their basic needs and improve themselves through education. Whether in 
the heart of Providence, or in the classrooms of Honduras and Belize, 
or in her forthcoming work in New York City, these are the constants of 
Sister Mary Reilly's career ministry.
  To be sure there have been many changes for Sister Mary Reilly. 
Indeed, she recently told the Providence Journal that her life has been 
filled with beginnings.
  Born in Providence, she began her career with the Sisters of Mercy as 
a teacher there, first at St. Mary School and then at St. Mary Academy 
at Bay View. Later, she was able to fulfill one of her goals by 
becoming a missionary and teaching in Central America.
  Returning to Rhode Island in 1970, Sister Mary Reilly began 
establishing the groundwork for institutions that have become a 
significant part of Rhode Island's landscape for social improvement. 
She was among the founders of McAuley House, a soup kitchen serving the 
homeless in Providence; the Good Friday Walk for Hunger and 
Homelessness; the COZ (Child Opportunity Zone), an innovative community 
effort to link schools with critical social service agencies and non-
profit organizations; and the Annual Walk for Literacy. Sister Mary 
Reilly was also among those who began the Washington lobby, NETWORK.
  However, the endeavor to which Sister Mary Reilly is most closely 
linked is Dorcas Place, which she helped found nearly 20 years ago with 
her colleague Deborah Thompson. Dorcas Place began as a literacy center 
for low-income young women. As Sister Mary Reilly and other leaders at 
Dorcas Place saw the need to address a greater array of issues in the 
community, the center grew to include women and men and took on a host 
of issues including literacy, employment and training, parenting, and 
advocacy. It has reached out to other organizations from Salve Regina 
University, with which Dorcas recently joined to create a certificate 
program for low-income and welfare dependent individuals, to Fleet 
Bank, to Rhode Island Legal Services, to the Rhode Island Department of 
Health, and many others. From a small corps of volunteers at first, 
Dorcas Place has grown to include 65 volunteer tutors and nearly 50 
mentors. While all of this is the result of a team effort, Sister Mary 
Reilly certainly deserves the lion's share of the credit. She has 
indeed been the inspiration behind this wonderful organization.
  Given Sister Mary Reilly's role in influencing the climate of social 
progress in Rhode Island, it was with great sadness that many Rhode 
Islanders learned of her decision to resign her post as Executive 
Director of Dorcas Place. She leaves to embark on a year's sabbatical 
in New York to work with other Sisters of Mercy who are following-up on 
the historic 1995 United Nations' Beijing Women's Conference.
  For Sister Mary Reilly, it is another beginning, and we know that she 
will not be far from Rhode Island or from Dorcas Place. Her legacy of 
good will and service to others will foster the continuation the work 
important work at Dorcas Place, and I join all of her colleagues in 
wishing her well in her newest adventure. We all hope to see her in 
Rhode Island again before long.

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