Three provinces have celebrated their provincial chapter and voted for new provincial administrations in recent days.

SLOVAK PROVINCE:
Provincial Minister, S.M. Magdaléna Sumilasová and Provincial Councilors: S.M. Lívia Gardianová, S.M. Anna Poláčková, S.M. Rafaela Zvrškovcová and S.M. Damiána Palenčárová.

Three provinces have celebrated their provincial chapter: SLOVAK PROVINCE, U.S. PROVINCE and CZECH PROVINCE.

On 15 July the General Chapter elected Sister Regina Zuk-Olszewska from Slovakia to serve as Vicar General.

Will serve as Councilors Sister Nancy Celaschi, Sister Jessy Mooleparambil and Sister Rossana Villablanca Escobar while Sister Regina Zuk-Olszewska is the Vicar General.

Sister Nancy Celaschi from the United States; Sister Jessy Mooleparambil from India; Sister Rossana Villablanca Escobar from Chile.

On 14 July the 20th General Chapter of the School Sisters of the Third Order Regular of St. Francis elected Sister M. Květa Vinklárková as the ninth General Minister of the Congregation. Sister Květa, a native of the Czech Republic, most recently served as General Vicar of the congregation.

Sister M. Květa Vinklárková.
Ninth General Minister of the Congregation.

Most of the Chapter members spent the Lord's Day visiting Rome, while a small group went to Assisi and another group to Bagnoregio and Viterbo. In the afternoon most gathered at the Italian provincial house to celebrate the gift of life of Sisters Margaret Klaschka, Henriette Bier, Margherita Faugno and Adelanna Brunozzi, who are all celebrating "special birthdays" this year.

Chapter members spent the Lord's Day visiting Rome, Assisi, Bagnoregio and Viterbo.
Election of the new General Minister and Council on 14 and 15 July.

On Monday 11 July the capitulars approved the election process then began the painstaking work of discussing and approving the proposals that had been sent to the chapter from the various jurisdictions. On 12 July they will polish the draft document of their work groups, resolve the final points of some proposals and the recommendations from the chapter.

13 July will hopefully see the final work on the proposals, recommendations and chapter document before preparations for the election of the new General Minister and Council on 14 and 15 July.

On the afternoon of 6 July the rest of the chapter members were free while the commission members worked to sift the comments and reports into four main themes for the chapter's further work: 1 – Internationality in Light of the Challenge of the Times; 2 – Fraternal Life in Light of Right Relationships; 3 – Formation for the Congregation in Llight of the Spirit of Discernment, and 4 – The Mission of the Congregation in Light of the New Evangelization.

1 – Internationality in Light of the Challenge of the Times;
2 – Fraternal Life in Light of Right Relationships;
3 – Formation for the Congregation in Llight of the Spirit of Discernment, and
4 – The Mission of the Congregation in Light of the New Evangelization.

The next day the chapter members divided into the four work groups, each group dedicated to one of the above themes.

This work, combined with the proposals that were submitted from the various jurisdictions, will serve as the basis for the general chapter mandate, which will give direction to the life and mission of the School Sisters of St. Francis for the next five years.

The 20^th General Chapter opened on 2 July with a Mass celebrated by Father Milan Bubák, S.V.D., who will lead the capitulars in two days of theological reflection on the chapter theme, "Go into the whole world and proclaim the Good News to all creation."

On 2 July begins the 20^th
General Chapter in the Generalate House in Rome.

Sister Mary Xavier Bomberger, General Minister, officially opened the General Chapter, which will be facilitated by Sister Patricia Orr, R.S.M.

The opening of the Chapter was preceded by an orientation session on 1 July and a Holy Hour at which Father José Ornelas Carvalho, Superior General of the Congregation of the Priests of the Sacred Heart, presided. The evening concluded with a picnic.

On 20-21 June the School Sisters of the Third Order Regular of St. Francis celebrated the inauguration and blessing of the new diagnostic imaging department and operating rooms at the Casa di Cura Villa Betania in Rome.

A new diagnostic imaging department and operating rooms was inaugurated at the Casa di Cura Villa Betania.

The private/public health-care facility is a sponsored ministry of the Congregation and since 1968 has been collaborating with Santo Spirito Hospital giving care to the sick.

For more information, see www.casadicuravillabetania.com

The 20^th General Chapter of the congregation begins on 2 July 2011 and concludes with a celebration on 16 July.

General Chapter of congregation
from 2 July to 16 July 2011 in Rome.

The twenty-eight capitulars will gather in the generalate in Rome to reflect on and discuss the theme, taken from the Gospel of Mark, "Go into the whole world and proclaim the Good News to all creation."

They will be charged with the task of setting the direction for the congregation's life and mission for the next five years and entrusting the implementation of this plan to the new General Minister and Council whom they will elect.

The School Sisters of the Third Order Regular of St. Francis announce the launch of their new web-site, www.sstorsf.org.

Launch of new web-site in English, Italian, Spanish, Czech and Slovak.

The site, which currently is in five languages, has information about the life and ministry of the sisters who serve in North and South America, Europe, Asia and Africa in education, health-care, catechesis, social work and various creative responses to the needs of the church and society.