FSPA stands committed to promote and protect the land

View from Villa St. Joseph
Photo courtesy of Lucy SLinger, FSPA

The Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration recently joined in a partnership with the Mississippi Valley Conservancy (MCV), located in La Crosse, Wis., to assist with the protection of the land surrounding Villa St. Joseph just east of La Crosse.

“The FSPA Facilities and Land Committee was commissioned to develop a comprehensive plan for stewardship of current and future FSPA-owned facilities and land,” says Sister Sharon Berger, FSPA mission councilor. The committee sought MVC’s assistance to begin a land inventory at the Villa St. Joseph. The land surrounding Villa St. Joseph was purchased by the Franciscan Sisters in 1895 as land to produce food for St. Rose Convent and the then St. Francis Hospital. Today the land provides a home for retired sisters, hermitages open to anyone interested in retreating in the peace and quiet of a rural setting, and a large garden that still provides food for FSPA.

Sister Lucy Slinger, FSPA ecological advocate, will coordinate the relationship with MVC. Sister Lucy focuses on and directs ecological efforts of the FSPA and the Ecospirituality Committee. “By partnering with Mississippi Valley Conservancy, we can identify the breadth of biological resources that exist on the Villa St. Joseph land,” says Sister Lucy. “The partnership will grow and guide us in decision making ensuring we protect the treasures that exist on that land.”

 

Additional Partnerships

Think Outside the Bottle Campaign

The Earth Charter Initiative