Announcement

As of December 11, I am no longer affiliated with the Cardinal Newman Society, for which I was the first-ever director of its Love and Responsibility Program. I have waited to report this news out of respect for the society, which has not yet made a public announcement. The society let me know today that I was free to make an announcement on my blog.

Cardinal Newman Society president Patrick Reilly wrote me a reference which reads in part:

"Dawn has a clear calling to write, speak and engage others on the most important issues. ... With much enthusiasm and at some personal cost, Dawn moved to the Washington, D.C., area to take on a new program that seemed a perfect fit for her interests, talents, and skills. She performed admirably, but in conforming to the organization's mission, we felt compelled to take the program in a direction that is less suited to Dawn's calling. She feels compelled to find the position that gives her the freedom to excel, and I fully support that."

I am thankful that the society gave me the opportunity to do outreach to college students, faculty, and supporters of Catholic colleges' identity. That outreach included producing public events promoting chastity and the culture of life, such as the Sisters of Life's first-ever on-campus volunteer training, the "Modest Proposals" seminar at the Ethics and Public Policy Center, and my lecture at St. Paul's Cathedral in Worcester (a counter-event to the Planned Parenthood-sponsored teen-pregnancy conference at the College of the Holy Cross). It also included writing and editing, including my essay "10½ Reasons to Be Chaste," which appeared in InsideCatholic.

I would be grateful for your prayers at this transitional time of my life. The season is not without its blessings: I have already acquired some consulting work for pro-life and pro-family organizations, and there are some full-time opportunities that sound promising. In addition, my expanded leisure time enables me to do something I've wanted to do since arriving in D.C.: volunteer for the Catholic Information Center, for which I am planning and promoting special events on and around the date of the March for Life (details to be announced after Christmas). However, even with these hopeful signs, it is stressful to be making major life decisions during a year when I have already moved houses and jobs, and when my closest friends are hundreds of miles away.

The graces that I need most right now and am requesting in my prayers are peace, patience, and discernment.

I am closing the comments to this post, again out of respect for the society. If you would like to contact me, please feel free to write me at dawneden -at- gmail.com (replacing the -at- with an atsign) or through my feedback form.

Thanks so much to those of you who read this blog every day and leave comments, including very much those who may not always agree with me but take part in the online dialogue anyway. Your support means more to me than I can say.