As a young girl growing up in Western Washington, Beverly Walsh didn’t imagine her life ahead: a journey into the Catholic Church, a marriage that would take her to Alaska and produce eight children including a son who is a priest, and a faith commitment that would establish her as a leading woman in the Catholic Church in Southcentral Alaska.
She served in parishes and day homes in California until 1954, when she went to Hawaii. She remained there serving in parishes and missions for 22 years before moving to Alaska where she worked in parishes and missions of Sitka until 1983. She then took time to take a clinical pastoral education program. Returning to Alaska in 1985, Sister Dutra spent the next 20 years in spiritual care in various areas of the Providence Health System in Anchorage.
Youth planning to attend the Alaska Catholic Youth Conference (ACYC) are in for some new surprises and activities. Organizers for the annual conference, held at Lumen Christi High School and Our Lady of Guadalupe Co-Cathedral from June 6 -9, are aiming for an engaging, uplifting and challenging event — open to middle and high school students.
A recent reflection on the sacrament of confirmation by Bishop Robert Barron as published in the Catholic Anchor got me thinking back on my 26 years confirming Catholics. Conferring the sacrament of confirmation has always been a great joy in my ministry as bishop, but in looking back over the years I can see that my message changed at some point. That is, of course, because the world has changed a great deal since 1990.