Unite in a Year of Beauty

With great gratitude, thank you to all who supported the life-giving calling and mission of our sisters through our annual Easter appeal.

Your generosity allows us to continue to be innovative, bold and courageous in our mission, vision and values.

We are happy to share that $41,496.38 from 178 donors was received, as of May 11.

Your gift supports our mission and aspirations

Your support of the annual Easter Appeal helps fund the rich expressions of Benedictine spirituality found in each of our communities, sacred spaces and in nature on our land. Your generosity enables so many, near and far, to experience loving and restorative growth, healing, learning, connectedness. 

Our spring appeal goal is to raise $75,000 from 200 donors

Donate Today

Visioning for the future

In 2020, Holy Wisdom Monastery embarked on a visioning process, led by the board of directors, community member Mary Hoddy and consultant Jay Ekelberry, to identify strengths of the monastery and aspirations for an ideal future. We called this process “Listen, Imagine, Create” and hundreds of stakeholders participated in summits, virtually and in person, to gather insight. This input was analyzed and five aspirations were identified.

In 2021, friends, volunteers, donors, community members, coworkers and sisters served on task forces for each aspiration. The task forces worked on goals around the aspirations. These aspirations will guide our work in 2022 and beyond. Here are the aspirations and the goals created by the task forces.

We aspire to:

Be a beacon of Benedictine spirituality

  • Form the communities at Holy Wisdom Monastery in Benedictine spirituality
  • Create a reflection tool for Holy Wisdom Monastery communities and working groups, to use as they do their work so that the Benedictine charism guides all we do
  • Form new generations in our shared Benedictine way of life
  • Enhance and expand our virtually streamed offerings

Achieve sustainability in all our essential resources

  • Explore how each community considers and plans for its sustainability
  • Segregate funds that support the sisters’ health care and retirement needs from funds used for other monastery functions
  • Establish a plan and process, grounded in the vision and values of Benedictine spirituality, for engaging every member of the community in meaningful work on behalf of the mission of the monastery
  • Ensure sustainability of leadership continuity in the coworker community by having succession plans in place for the prioress/president, board, CEO and departmental directors

Live ever more deeply into diversity, inclusivity and equity

  • Listen and remove barriers
  • Educate
  • Partner
  • Ongoing commitment

Expand the monastery without walls

  • Steward a robust, dependable and well-trained team of Holy Wisdom Monastery volunteer tech hosts
  • Expand virtual experiences for those who can’t be at the monastery
  • Create a Benedictine-inspired, experiential and informative website

Embrace our land as a spiritual resource

  • Share the history of the land on the kiosk and provide a warm and hospitable welcome to visitors
  • Create educational experiences that illustrate reverence for creation as a value of both Benedictines and the Ho-Chunk
  • Nurture a robust and diverse care for the earth volunteer program that centers spiritual growth, long-term relationships and reciprocity

Learn more and
get involved

To learn more about the mission of the monastery or how your gift will be used, contact Amy Ryan, director of mission advancement:

Donate Today


Thank you to our Easter appeal donors

Together we have raised $41,496.38* from 178 gracious donors. Thank you!

Gracious donor insights and areas of support:

  • 20 new donors
  • 16 donor states, from CA, FL, IL, IA, MA, MI, MN, NJ, NY, NC, OH, OR, PN, VA, WA and WI
  • Top 5 areas of support – Wisdom Fund, Care for the Sisters, Sunday Assembly, Oblate Community, Care for the Earth

*As of May 11, 2022

Anonymous (12)
Barb and Dan Abbott
Sandy Adams
Jane Ahlstrom
Mary Albedyll
Marilyn and John Allen
Amy Alstad
Ann Athas
Jane Ayer
Tammy Barthels
Karen Bate
Jan Benson
Gordon Bertagmoli
Kathleen Blandford
Merrill and Brenda Bormann
Sue Brandt
Carroll and Larry Bross
Linda and Robert Bruck
Mary Cirilli and David Jahr
Debra Claire
Barbara Clark
Jim Clay
Linda Consigny
Frank Court
Rev Dennis Crowley
Mary Danaher
Jean Daoud
Jean and Victor Delisle
Cara Delson-Huber
Stephen Dinehart
Patricia Donovan
Helen Drobniak
Mary Drucker
Diane and Bill Ducett
Finn Enke
Mary Ann Erdtmann
James Esmoil
Johanna Fabke
Steve and Pat Faivre
Maggie Felker and Mike Byrd
Marge Ferstl
Rev Dr Jerry and Kathy Folk
Lawrence Garcia
Ellen Geishirt
Jane and Ollie Ginther
Katy Golden
Mary Gordon
Ingrid Gordon
Toby Grabs and Jennifer Kobylecky
Claudia Greco
Dana Greene and Richard Roesel

Bette Grover
Emily Halapatz
Daniel and Ann Halbach
Breianna Hasenzahl-Reeder and Russ Faulkner
Rev Al Heggen and Helen Christiansen
Peter Hoff and Paul Patenaude
Kim Hogan
Jane and Steven Holtzman
Rev Stephen Honeygosky
Daniel Hounchell
Jane Clare Ishiguro
Louise Johnson
Suman Joshi
Kathy and Patrick Kain
Kathleen Kelly Shanovich and Ronald Shanovich
Darcy Kind and Marc Vitale
Warren Kmiec
Rev Linda Knieriemen
Sue Koleczek
Joan Kollasch and Kurt Hohmeister
Kathleen Krchnavek
Carole Kretschman
Ms M Sharon Lane
Joan Leannah-Brumm
Patricia LeFevere
Carl Lekan
Elsa Leverington
Rev Brad S. Lutz
Dr Cameron Macdonald
Nell Mally
Karen Manning and Daniel Uhlrich
Lynne Marek
Margaret Maroney
Michel and Patrick McGettigan
Terry McGinley
Car McGinley
Kathy and Robert McGrath
Carole McGuire
Charles McLimans and Richard Merrion
Eileen McNamara
Julie Melton
Doris Metcalf
Ruth and Ed Mihevc
Rev J.D. and Rev Victoria Millar
Lorraine Moore
Dale Morgan
Liz Morris
Marianne Moss
Carolyn Moynihan Bradt
Jane Niebauer
Donald and Patricia Niver

Rev. Laura Norby
Beth and Jerry O’Brien
Manley and Ann Olson
Judy and Jim Olson
Barb Osborn
Jennie Ott
Jon Parker
Christine and Elaine Pasinski Thomas
Wayne and Jackie Pauly
Lou Ann Petersen-Noltner and Edward Noltner
Anna Pidgeon and Volker Radeloff
Rex Piercy
Lynn Ramshaw
Janice Reinersman
Julie Ristau
Janice and Gregory Robbins
Susan Robillard
Dave Rosenberry
Amy L. Ryan
Jane Sadusky
Douglas Schiller
Rev Karen Schlack
Beth Schultz Byrnes
Cynthia Scott
Pam Shellberg and Judy Armelin
Kimberly and James Shoenbill
Lise Skofronick
Bob Smith
Margaret Sommers
Peggy and Mike Spiewak
Linda Stahelin
Aggie Steichen
Dale Stelter
Therese and Michael Stevens
Scott and Holly Stoner
Rev Jan Summers
Judi Treble
Maureen Van Dinter
Les and Jeannie Weber
Sally Wedde
John J Whalen
Mathew White
Dr Joseph and Louise Wiesenfarth
James Wilson
Joyce and Gary Wodka
Barbara and John Wodynski
Dave Zimmerman
Laurie and Jim Zimmerman
Anita Zurbrugg
Steve Zwettler and Barbara Brummer


To deepen your connection with one another and our ecumenical and Benedictine values, we bring you Benedictine Reflections.

Benedictine Reflections are a compilation of writings from community members throughout Holy Wisdom. They will share writings of reflections, meditations, prayers, poems and other creative pieces, as our authors are called to explore the annual Easter appeal theme – A Year of Beauty. We will add a new Benedictine Reflection every week.