Celebrating Sister Virginia Jones, April 2022

As Earth Month gets underway, we recognize the ongoing contributions to earthcare and environmental stewardship of one of Hope for Creation’s founders, Sister Virginia Jones of the Congregation of the Sisters of St. Joseph in Kalamazoo. Through her teaching at Nazareth College, Western Michigan University, and Siena Heights University, she inspired many students to appreciate and care for our planet. Sister Ginny helped host Kalamazoo’s first Earth Day in 1970, on the campus of Nazareth College where she taught environmental science. Her conservation efforts led to the 1973 dedication of the Bow in the Clouds Natural Area, once part of the Nazareth campus. Sister Ginny served on the board of Michigan Interfaith Power and Light and the Hope for Creation steering committee. Her current efforts at earthcare include support for green burial and regenerative agriculture on land owned by her congregation. 

You can read more about Sister Ginny’s many contributions to sustainability and eco-spirituality here:

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/celebrating-earth-day-thr_b_1443291

In her own words this April:

“As I reflect on the many years of my Earth Ministry, I guess that it has been a time when I have come to have a deeper and deeper understanding of the promise our God made in Genesis 9 –  ‘I set the bow-in-the-clouds as the sign of my covenant between me and the Earth’ – an important reminder that our loving God cares for all of creation, and we as humans are called to remember that in the way that we care for the Earth, our common home.”   

We at Hope for Creation are consistently inspired by Sister Ginny’s faithful calls to action, and as Kalamazoo prepares to celebrate its 52nd Earth Day, we celebrate all of the ways her gentle leadership has advanced creation care in the Kalamazoo area and beyond. Thank you, Sister Ginny, for your many years of advocacy for the Earth!