Christian hope is rooted in Christ’s death and Resurrection. It is a gift that strengthens courage, serenity, and service. It is a hope that is meant to be lived, not just awaited. This one-day retreat invites you to live the by practicing Christian hope as a lived reality. We will explore how hope grows and moves in our lives. These talks and reflections will be presented different members of our Holy Cross Community, and will show how this call to hope is one we all must answer.
Andrea Lee, IHM served from 2016-2022 as president of Alverno College and for nearly two decades prior to that as president of St. Catherine University. Both Alverno and St. Kate’s are women’s institutions with St. Kate’s the largest and most comprehensive college for women in the United States. Prior to her presidencies, Sr. Andrea served as dean, executive vice president and interim president at Marygrove College. Following service as interim provost at St. Norbert College in 2022-2023, she came to the University of Notre Dame to serve as lead chaplain to the faculty and staff. A recognized expert on mission and sponsorship, Sr. Andrea served as associate director and mission animator for the Mercy Conference of Higher Education, and currently serves in a similar consulting role for the U.S. Province of Holy Cross and for her own religious congregation as well. She has served on numerous boards in healthcare and higher education, including as chair of the Board of Directors of the Association of Catholic Colleges’ and Universities (ACCU), board member of Catholic Health Initiatives (now Common Spirit) the first public juridic person in Catholic healthcare authorized by the Holy See. She has also served as Mission Committee Chair for Ascension Health. Named a distinguished alumna, St. Andrea also holds a lifetime appointment as Alumni Fellow at the Pennsylvania State University and is the 2025 winner of the Hesburgh Award, ACCU’s oldest and highest honor.
Register now for the 2026 Spes Unica Associates June Promise Retreat Let Hope be the Anchor that holds, Christian Hope in Action June 27, 2026 (8:30am – 4pm ET) and discover renewed purpose in your mission work.
The Spes Unica Associates invite you to a virtual conference on Hope in Mission, an inspiring gathering exploring how the charism of Holy Cross continues to bring light to the world. Together, we’ll reflect on the power of hope as the heart of our shared mission, drawing strength from our Holy Cross spirituality and one another.
Fr. John Quigley, OFM, a Franciscan friar in the American US Province, is a preacher and artist. He spent 10 years in Rome working for the Order of Friars Minor’s Justice and Peace Office and 12 years in Geneva, Switzerland at the United Nations’ Council on Human Rights. Currently he conducts annual pilgrimages to Rome and Assisi following the footsteps of St. Francis of Assisi.Recently he has preached two of the most recent annual retreats for the Brothers of the Holy Cross at Notre Dame.
Talk Description:
Hope is a practical path that has challenged, sustained and leads people through times of personal and collective doubts, fears and division. Hope is a series of small and momentous, conscious and unconscious choices guided by faith that finds fulfillment in Love. Fr. John will look at examples of people who brought direction and purpose to humanity by being women and men of hope.
Talk Description:
Brother Victor Corraya, C.S.C. and other missionaries will describe the Holy Cross new mission in Papua New Guinea sharing some of the rewards, challenges and the hopes for future development.
“IT IS NEVER TOO LATE TO BE WHO GOD CALLS YOU TO BE”.
Bankrupt at 20. Single, homeless, drug addicted at 22. College dropout at 22. Scorned, broken, almost divorced at 37. Millionaire at 30. A healthy mother of 4 at 34. A seminary graduate at 42. Sanctified in a thriving marriage at 45.
Judy is a DYNAMIC SPEAKER, DEVELOPMENT COACH, AUTHOR AND HOST.
Judy believes in the godliness and grace that lies with each of us. She dispels lies and uncovers TRUTH while empowering listeners to get past the past and receive the love and mercy God has in abundance for all of us. She wants for all to believe in the resurrection power of Jesus. Her message of hope and healing centers on her journey from captivity to freedom. Her style has been described as enlightening, engaging, entertaining, edifying and heartbreaking. She uses her sense of humor and real struggles from her personal life and privileged perspective of God to compel her audience and connect theology to daily reality. The power behind her life journey will expand your self-awareness, remind you of God’s infinite love for you, rekindle love for Christ and his mother while encouraging a personal relationship with God.
Talk Description:
HOPE…Hold on promises eternal…Hang on pain ends….
Hope is the thing we cannot live without. Judy’s testimony is filled with reasons and real life experiences of how HOPE was made manifest in her life because of who God is.
Hope is a confident expectation of a future fulfillment based on the character of an unchanging God who keeps His promises.
