Impact Stories

Sister Ruth Marie Soens was born Dolores Soens on July 9, 1937 in Kenosha, WI. She is the youngest of six children: three boys and three girls. One of the girls – Ruth Marie – died at age 5 of scarlet fever, before Dolores was born. In 1957, Dolores took her vows with the Sisters…

As vaccines begin to roll out across the globe, people are looking to a fresh start.  During the COVID-19 pandemic, it became clear to the Mission Helpers of the Sacred Heart in Towson, Maryland that many of their Sisters did not have access to electronic devices that support Zoom or other online communication activities. They…

As the COVID-19 pandemic took hold, it changed almost every aspect of daily life at Camilla Hall, the convent home and health care center for the Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary in Malvern, PA. Staff and residents wore masks. Visitors and volunteers were no longer allowed to enter the building. As signs…

“I can speak for all the elder Sisters when I say that the new mini-van we have drives so smoothly and isn’t bumpy at all and most importantly we don’t have to worry about breaking down on the freeway!”

“The help our community received from SOAR! to purchase a handicap accessible van has helped me deal with being dependent.”

Last fall, the Sisters of the Monastery of the Visitation in Toledo, Ohio reached out to SOAR! with an urgent request. The boilers for the monastery, which controlled the heating system, were beyond repair. They needed a replacement before the cold winter set in.   Thanks to our donors, SOAR! was able to provide a $25,000…

A van means the Sisters can get to medical appointments more easily and stay engaged in life.

Every summer after SOAR! awards grants, we receive stacks of thank you notes in the mail from grateful religious communities. Here are just a few.

On an ordinary day in April, the Benedictine Sisters at Benet Hill Monastery in Colorado Springs, Colorado, woke to discover their home had been broken into the night before.

The Sisters needed a new oil tank quickly – snow was in the forecast and temperatures were in the single digits.