The Notre Dame Center for Ethics and Culture will award the 2016 Notre Dame Evangelium Vitae Medal to the Little Sisters of the Poor and their Mother Provincial, Sr. Loraine Marie Maguire, on April 9, 2016.

The Little Sisters of the Poor are an international congregation of women religious dedicated to serving the elderly poor. Founded in 1839 by St. Jeanne Jugan, the Little Sisters now operate in 31 countries around the world, with 30 homes in the United States that offer health care and assisted living for more than 13,000 low-income seniors.

In 2012, led by Maguire, the Little Sisters of the Poor became the face of religious nonprofit organizations struggling against a federal mandate to facilitate access to contraceptives and drugs that (according to FDA labeling) may function by causing the death of newly conceived human beings.

Read more about this year's honorees.

Event Details

Mass, celebrated by Bishop Kevin Rhoades (Fort Wayne–South Bend), will begin at 5 p.m. on Saturday, April 9, in the Basilica of the Sacred Heart at the University of Notre Dame. Dinner and the medal presentation will follow at 6:30 p.m. in the South Dining Hall.

Registration: This event is free and open to the public, but registration is required and seating is limited. To RSVP, please fill out the registration form here by April 1. Cocktail attire. Guests welcome.

Parking: Check in with the guard at the main gate for directions to appropriate campus parking. Lots A9 and A15 are typically reserved for mass at the basilica, but additional lots may be suggested. Drop-off available via Corby Dr. (for the basilica) and the access road behind Duncan Hall off Holy Cross Dr. (for South Dining Hall). View a campus map here.

Questions? Please contact Laura Nash or call 574-631-9656.