Mercy Associates Live Out Spiritual and Corporal Works of Mercy 

Story by Karen A. Avitabile

A group of women and men are spreading the Gospel of Jesus while sharing the charism of the Sisters of Mercy with others.

Mercy Associates live out the spiritual and corporal works of mercy through the example established by Sisters of Mercy founder Catherine McAuley. 

“Our group efforts for service and mission stem from the three areas of our covenants: prayer, ministry and community,” says West Hartford resident Kathleen “Kathy” Swift, who serves as local area facilitator for Mercy Associates of Connecticut. 

Small groups of Mercy Associates meet about once a month, usually in West Hartford, with agendas that include prayer, book study and guest speakers on Mercy ministries. There is plenty of time to socialize too.

In 1968, Mercy Associates formed in Connecticut. Currently, about 100 people, predominantly from the Archdiocese of Hartford, serve as Mercy Associates. Associates do not have to be based at a church or a parish; but some members are active participants in Catholic parishes as part of their covenant. 

More than 3,000 Mercy Associates are located throughout the United States, Latin America, the Caribbean, Guam and the Philippines. 

Candidates participate in a yearslong process of orientation and discernment. Their preparation consists of regular meetings with Mercy Associates and Sisters of Mercy for prayer, fellowship and support.

After the period of discernment is completed, candidates participate in a ceremony to mark their formal commitment to the Mercy family — to be partners with the Sisters of Mercy, to share in their spiritual life and to live out their pledge of service to others. 

The ceremony is also a time for veteran associates to renew their personal covenant as a Mercy Associate.

Volunteer work by Mercy Associates has included: helping the sisters who live at St. Mary Home, a Mercy community in West Hartford; collecting clothing for children and teens in Haiti and Ukraine; and purchasing household items for victims of domestic violence who are setting up new homes. 

“An associate reached out to an agency which provides housing, counseling, job and child support,” Swift says. “Because their clients have to set up new homes having left their abusers, they asked for household items.”

Annual events for Mercy Associates include a day of prayer and a weekend retreat hosted by Mercy by the Sea in Madison. 

“Each year, a new game is used to facilitate getting to know each other even better,” Swift says. “We also have game days, teas, soup lunches and ice cream socials, blending associates and sisters.”

A Mercy Associate for 31 years, Swift remembers the Sisters of Mercy in school when she was a student at The Academy of Our Lady of Mercy, Lauralton Hall, in Milford.  

“They were joyful, affirming women who helped me see that I could make a difference,” she says.

Anyone interested in becoming a Mercy Associate can participate in a local orientation meeting on Sept. 9. On Mercy Day, Sept. 21, a Mass and luncheon will be held at St. Mary Home in West Hartford. For more information about becoming a Mercy Associate, call the Sisters of Mercy office in West Hartford at 860.594.8619 ext. 225, email ctmercyassociates@gmail.com or visit sistersofmercy.org.