We’d been praying for good weather - all week, we’d been blessed with steady rain, but on this day, we hoped for sun! As Mass ended at 9 a.m. on Saturday, March 9th, the rain returned. But that didn’t stop about 20 Stanford University students from gathering outside our gate for a morning of grounds work!

A couple months ago, Lourdes, the campus minister of the Catholic Community at Stanford contacted our community and asked we had any needs or projects they could help us with. They applied for a grant to fund the major project of the day - a much-needed greenhouse for protecting young seedlings and plants started by our gardening sisters.

While Sister Amata Marie and one group of students set to work building the greenhouse, another group headed to the orchard and fields for some “heavy lifting” - helping Sister Mary Francis clear away branches, trimming and debris hazards for the tractor to run later in the season.

Finally, a third group went with Sister Andre Marie to tackle the grass and weeds in our “Mary Garden”, a garden renovation project-in-progress. The Stanford students also donated a shrine pillar and pledged a protective covering for the Our Lady of Lavang Shrine, which will be part of this garden.

After a good morning of work in the pouring rain (which seemed to stop just as the bell rang for Midday Prayer), the students and sisters dried up enough to go the chapel and choir for Midday Prayer and the Rosary. After the midday meal, we met once again in the parlor for some questions, answers and good conversation.

A big thank you to Lourdes and the Stanford students! Deo gratias!