Sister Jo-Anne Miller, C.S.J.P.

How long have you been involved in vocation ministry?

I have been vocation director since 2009.

Are you part of a vocation team?

Yes, I oversee vocation ministry in our three regions: Western U.S., Eastern U.S., and the United Kingdom (England and Scotland.) The East and UK regions have a vocation team member who is responsible. I am usually the first contact made by an inquirer through our website or through VISION. I send information to the inquirer, and then, if she is in the UK or Eastern U.S., another team member gets in touch.

Has being a member of NRVC been helpful?

Yes, NRVC, both national and regional, has been an immense help to me. I have attended many NRVC convocations and workshops and always come away with new ideas, more connections with vocation ministers and a sense of celebration of who we are as a multi-faceted church. Father Ray Carey’s workshops have been most valuable to me in being able to identify “red flag” areas concerning potential candidates and determining how to proceed with an inquirer. The workshops on cultural diversity and canon law/immigration issues have also been extremely helpful.

What has been your best outreach effort?

In recent years our new members have been very diverse: e.g., Latina, Korean, Kenyan, Nigerian, Indian, Irish, etc. In 2012 our formation director and I planned and implemented a program for all three regions of our congregation called “Interculturality: Embracing Diversity in a Global World, Global Church, Global Congregation.” Sister Tere Maya, CCVI led the presentations and served as a resource on interculturality and its implications for vocation and formation ministry. This program helped achieve a greater consciousness among our sisters and associates about the value of interculturality as an expression of our charism of peace through justice.

I also use my graphic design skills for creating welcoming and attractive information materials (brochures, banners, PowerPoint presentations, etc.) for vocation ministry—both for our congregation and for our inter-community vocation work in the Pacific Northwest.

Do you have any words of wisdom to those who are new to this ministry?

I encourage people in vocation discernment to consider this question: “Where can I live out my dreams and hopes in a healthy, happy, and holy way?” As a vocation minister and a woman religious, I also try to live in a way that is healthy, happy, and holy!