Daughters of Divine Charity

Together We Live in the Legacy that is the Daughters of the Divine Charity

Appeals

Christmas Appeal

November 24, 2025

Dear Faithful Friends,

The spirit of love surrounds the liturgical season of Advent, a sacred time marked by anticipation and waiting for Jesus.  As Advent approaches, we begin to prepare both our hearts and our homes for His coming.  This holy season serves as a reminder to engage in thoughtful preparation, inviting us to reflect on the profound messages of hope, peace, joy, and love that accompany our anticipation of the Savior’s birth.

The joy that springs forth from this season of giving and love resonates in every heart.   The blessings of Advent are felt especially by children, for whom the spirit of generosity and love brings tremendous happiness and warmth during this time of waiting.

This season invites us to pause and reflect on the values that hold a special place in our hearts.  Friendship, compassion, service, community, family traditions, and the genuine joy that comes from giving rather than receiving are at the center of this sacred time. These cherished values have guided the Daughters of Divine Charity in their ministries throughout the years, shaping their unwavering dedication to serving youth, women, and the elderly.

During Advent and throughout the Christmas Season, Jesus’s message of loving God and neighbor stands as our guiding light. It is this call to love and service that inspires us to live out these values more fully, nurturing a spirit of generosity.

In this spirit of Christmas, consider supporting our retired sisters who now face many challenges as they age.  Your generosity and support ensures them of living their golden years in a loving, safe environment, receiving the compassionate care they once unselfishly offered to others, "making God’s love visible." Every gift, large or small, contributes to honoring their legacy of dedication and faithfulness as a Daughter of Divine Charity and their commitment of service to the people of God.

Remembering the Daughters of Divine Charity, that Sister, who perhaps touched your life because she took the time to teach you to pray, to listen, to encourage, to help you understand a lesson, to care for you before or after school or just made you smile and feel welcome is a prayer offered in their honor.   Their prayers today continue to uplift and support our ministries that have inspired generations of students, young women, and the elderly by their simplicity and love for others.

As we prepare to celebrate the gift of Jesus and His unconditional love for us, I invite you to consider making a donation that will continue to bring light and joy to those who have dedicated their lives to serving others. Your thoughtful remembrance, support and generosity not only honors their lifelong commitment but also helps ensure that their days are filled with the same love and warmth they have shared throughout the years.   

On behalf of the Daughters of Divine Charity, especially our retired Sisters, I offer my heartfelt gratitude for your love and generosity, your partnership and support, as together we continue our journey of faith in this jubilee year as pilgrims of hope embraced by unconditional love of Jesus, the example Mary, and the protection of our patron St. Joseph.

Wishing you and your loved ones the gifts of faith, joy, love, hope, and the blessings of good health during this Christmas season and throughout the new year 2026.

United in love and prayer through the Sacred Hearts of Jesus, Mary and Joseph,

Sister Mary Coffelt, F.D.C.
Superior
Daughters of Divine Charity
Holy Family Vice-Province

Feast of St. Joseph

Daughters of Divine Charity
Holy Family Vice-Province

Wishing Everyone a Blessed and
Happy Feast of St. Joseph

   “All Sisters have an unending trust in
our holy Father Joseph.

Besides the Mother of our Lord
he was confident and is also our
greatest advocate and protector. 

May this love and this trust
never be diminished in the
Sisters of the Congregation.”    

(Chronicle, I., November 1, 1876)

Happy-Feast-of-St.-Joseph-March-19-J-2025
Happy-Feast-of-St.-Joseph-March-19-J-2025-2

Memorare to St. Joseph

Remember, O most chaste spouse of the Virgin Mary, that never was it known that anyone who implored your help and sought your intercession was left unaided.  Full of confidence in your power, I come to you and beg your protection.  

Despise not O Guardian of the Redeemer my petitions, but in your goodness, hear and answer me.   Amen.   

May St. Joseph guard and protect your families as he did the Holy Family.                                        

St. Joseph, Intercede for us!  

Remembering you in our daily prayers! 

God Bless and keep you in His loving embrace,
Sister Mary and Sisters

Christmas 2024

Dear Friend, 

We hope this letter finds you well and filled the joy of the Christmas season. On behalf of the Daughters of Divine Charity, we extend our heartfelt gratitude for your generous support of our retired sisters. Your kindness and thoughtfulness embody the true spirit of Christmas, and we are truly blessed by your generosity.

As we reflected on the glorious gift of Christ’s love, we were reminded of the strength and comfort that come from our community. Thanks to your contribution, our retired sisters will be able to enjoy their golden years with dignity, receiving the care and support they need and deserve. Your gift not only provides for their physical needs but also uplifts their spirits, reminding them that they are loved and cherished by those they have served throughout their lives.

With each prayer, each act of kindness, and each moment of compassion shared by our sisters, they continue to touch the lives of many, inspiring us all to live out the values of love and service that define our faith. Your support reinforces their mission and allows them to share Christ’s light with others, even in this new chapter of life.

Thank you once again for your generosity. May God bless you abundantly during this Christmas season and in the coming year. Your kindness is a beautiful reminder of God’s love and grace at work in our community. We look forward to keeping you updated on the impact of your generosity and the continued journey of our sisters.

Wishing you and your loved ones peace, joy, and fulfillment during this blessed season.

In Christ’s Love,
Elizabeth P. Cotter
Director of Development
Daughters of Divine Charity

Spring 2024 Appeal

Help us to Renovate
St. Mary’s Convent

Spring 2024


Dear Friends,

St. Joseph the Worker is celebrated each year on May 1st. As this feast day celebrates all workers, it is fitting for the Daughters of Divine Charity to share our thoughts and needs of support for our Sisters in our spring appeal.

Considering the recent updates made to most of our convents, it was quite simple for our Council to work with the Development staff to identify the greatest need of support for the 2024 St. Joseph’s Day appeal.

In evaluating the current needs of the Sisters, a unanimous decision was made by the Council to focus efforts on St. Mary’s Convent in Manhattan, founded in 1913.

This mission continues to serve hundreds of young women living in Manhattan whether to start a career or to study while living under the supervision of the Sisters which fulfills the legacy of our Foundress, Servant of God, Mother Franziska Lechner’s desire to care for young women during the 1860’s. We, her Daughters continue this mission that was so close to her heart for the past one hundred eleven years.

During COVID this mission underwent a substantial economic loss of 50% of its revenue due to the declining number of residents. The Sisters always have put the needs of those in their care before their own.

After many decades of no renovations to the Sisters living space the convent area is now in urgent need of renovation. This renovation will focus on the second floor dedicated as the living space for the Sisters known as the convent. The renovation will include replacing the old carpeting in the hallways and kitchen with flooring that is more suitable for walkers and canes. The living room furniture will be replaced. All rooms will be painted and the bathrooms will be made handicapped accessible. These needed modifications will provide our dedicated Sisters to this mission with a more suitable, safer living spaces for all the Sisters.

You, our dear benefactors, have helped us in so many ways throughout the years and we ask that you consider contributing to the needs of St. Mary’s Convent by renewing your generous gift. Each monetary gift, no matter the size, when joined with others does indeed make a difference in the outcome of the appeal.

Thank you in advance for your consideration and ongoing commitment to the Daughters of Divine Charity who have touched the lives of so many by serving women, youth, and the elderly in the United States since 1913.

May Our Foundress, Servant of God, Mother Franziska Lechner intercede for your needs and intentions. May the carpenter, St. Joseph, our patron, and guide bless you and your families as we all “make God’s LOVE visible” in the world today by our example, service, and generosity.

With love, prayer, and gratitude,

Sister Mary Coffelt, F.D.C.
Daughters of Divine Charity

Christmas 2023 Appeal

Dear Friends and Benefactors,

The feast of the Epiphany, the Three Kings, traditionally celebrated on January 6th reminds us of the perseverance, curiosity and desire of the Magi in following the spectacular star, the uncharted path, to find the one who was foretold to come.   Discovering the infant Jesus in Bethlehem, must have been an awesome, humbling experience which brought inexpressible joy as they presented their gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh to honor Him.   

Like the Magi, the women who have entered the Congregation of the Daughters of Divine Charity have followed not a bright star, but answered a call from within, searching for the community to which they would be able to respond to their vocation of serving the people of God “making HIS love visible”. Being that beacon of love and light, uplifting and supporting each other in prayer and community.

The Sisters have indeed spent their lives faithfully devoted to bringing the love of Jesus to others, as they have encountered the family of God, as teachers, nurses, catechists, administrators, sacristans, care givers in the hope that others will also live their lives in service for Jesus.  

For the retired Sisters, their service doesn’t end when they announce their retirement.  The Sisters are beacons of light in the lives of many friends and families.  Their daily prayers and Mass intentions are most often for those whom they have served throughout the years or for prayer requests they have promised to pray for.      

The beauty and splendor of the autumn season is approaching with its brilliant fall colors reminding us that Thanksgiving will soon be upon us followed by the Advent season, anticipating the joyful celebration of the Birth of our Savior.

Today in this season of thanksgiving, I wish to thank you on behalf of all the Sisters for being a part of their history and for allowing them to make a lasting impression in your life.  We are so grateful that you continue to keep them in your prayers and are so thoughtful and generous in your support of the Daughters of Divine Charity as we continue to care for our most senior and infirm Sisters.  

With gratitude to God, we thank you in advance for your financial support.  Please know that your needs and intentions are remembered in the Sisters’ daily prayers and monthly Mass intention for all our friends and benefactors.  

God Bless YOU!

With love, prayer and gratitude, 
Sister Mary Coffelt, F.D.C.
Provincial Superior

P.S. I hope that we can count on you for a contribution towards the care of our Sisters. Thank you, again, for your generosity and prayers.

New Chairs will Make a World of Difference

New Chairs will Make a
World of Difference to Our Sisters.
Will You Help Us Today?

Support Our Sisters!

I hope this letter finds you in good spirits as we prepare for the coming Paschal banquet.

Lent is such a special time for those of our faith. A time to contemplate and reflect on the sacrifice Jesus made for us. As Sisters, this is a time when we focus on mediation. Our communal prayers reflect on the gifts we have shared through our lives and celebrate all those whom we have been able to share God's love with through teaching, nursing, and helping those that could not help themselves.

There is also something special about the seasonal change that occurs during Lent. As the weather begins to warm and flowers begin to bloom, many of the Sisters can often be heard praying in the communal living room or meditating in the gardens. With nearly every Sister in our convents now retired or receiving full-time aid from healthcare professionals, there is a sense of peace and calm knowing they can spend their days in quiet comfort. They are so thankful to all those that contributed to making their homes comfortable and inviting over the years.

Recently the Sisters noticed that despite their efforts to take exceptional care of things like their recliners and dining room chairs, the wear and tear over the last decade is beginning to show. Combined with the changing needs of the elderly Sisters that need strong armrests and chairs that are best suited for their current physical challenges, the Sister who serves as the Convent Administrator, Sister Regina has asked for assistance to replace 35 dining room chairs and 4 recliners. Sister Regina has researched the best available options and is taken aback at the cost of these items. The price of each dining room chair is $275 and the recliners range from $400 to $500.

These are very simple items that greatly alter life in the convent. Being able to confidently rise from the dining room chairs, allowing more Sisters to join the community for shared meals. Otherwise, they hesitate to leave their bedroom leaving them to eat alone or with their health assistant. Appropriate seating in a living room brings all the Sisters together not just for social events but community prayer and discussion.

At this time, I ask that you consider making a donation to our Sisters' new seating. We hope to have all our replacements as soon as possible.

We appreciate your support and thank you for considering our needs.

May St. Joseph continue to bless you.

Yours in prayer,
Sister M. William McGovern, FDC