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UST Students Help Restore Franciscan Sisters' Land
11/10/2008
A group of nine UST students spent fall break knee-deep in  muck and mud, digging and hauling rocks during an environmental service trip at the Franciscan Life Center in Meriden, Connecticut.
It may have been hard work, but this profound experience to restore the Franciscan Sisters' land prompted them to leave their muddy boots behind in hopes to return, or perhaps to let other students fill their shoes next year.
Sister Damien Marie Savino, FSE, Environmental Science and Studies chair, led the service trip to the motherhouse of the Franciscan Sisters of the Eucharist to restore a farm pond and dam into a wetland area.
 “This was our inaugural environmental service voyage, and my concept was to take the students to a place away from campus with beautiful land that needs help,” Sr. Damien Marie said. “It was special for me, because as a young sister, I worked a lot on the pond in its original form, so it was nice to be called upon to bring my professional expertise back to help the Sisters. It was also an excellent opportunity for the students to learn from the Sisters and the hands-on field experience.”
The trip exemplifies the new Environmental Science and Studies program’s integrated approach to creation, rooted in the Catholic intellectual tradition. The ESS program educates students as to the basic science underlying environmental issues, along with the moral imperative to care for the earth. Some of the students on the trip had just learned about rivers and streams in UST's introduction to earth science class. Combined with opportunities for morning and evening prayer, interaction with the Sisters and additional reading materials, students were able to look at nature from many perspectives.
 Elizabeth Rinaldi, a senior environmental studies major, said one of the most memorable moments of the trip was when she got stuck in the pond muck in her hip waders, and Sr. Damien Marie had to pull her out of the pond with a rope.
“My main area of interest is wetland habitat restoration, so this trip was especially meaningful to me,” Rinaldi said “We spend a lot of time reading case studies and learning scientific concepts in classes indoors. This was a chance for us to use what we learned in class and to go to a part of the country where we could learn about unfamiliar flora and fauna.”
 Just in time for peak fall foliage, the group took a break from work to enjoy nature and tour the Connecticut River Valley landscape with a steam train and boat ride along the Connecticut River.
Where is the next ESS excursion? In the summer of 2009, the ESS Department, in collaboration with the English Department, will be offering a field-based literature course entitled “Nature and the Environment in Literature,” which will be held on the grounds of the Franciscan Sisters' beautiful 230 acre farm in Michigan.
View this story for more information about ESS the program majors or visit the ESS home page.
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