Bay View Academy Supports #BringBackOurGirls

Middle and Upper School Students Take Part in a Morning Vigil to Pray for the Safe Return of the Schoolgirls Kidnapped in Nigeria

East Providence, RI – This morning over 500 young women gathered on the front lawn of Bay View Academy to pray for the safe return of the schoolgirls who were kidnapped in Nigeria, one month ago. Standing in front of a statue of Mary, they listened as Peer Ministers offered readings, reflections and prayers, and sang along with Bay View's Chamber Choir. At the request of Vittoria Pacifico-DeBenedictis (Hyde Park, MA), Bay View's President, they turned towards the street to watch four leaders of the Mercy Action Club, an Upper School community service group, process across the lawn. As their classmates looked on, the Mercy Action students carried a banner that read, “Bay View Academy, Sponsored by the Sisters of Mercy, Supports #BringBackOurGirls,” to the front of the campus and prominently displayed it on the Academy’s fence. President DeBenedictis announced that the banner would remain in place until the Nigerian schoolgirls are returned home. She closed the vigil with this thought as the opening chords of the hymn, “We Are Called,” (by David Hass) filled the air: “Let the world hear our call to act with justice, to love, to serve and to walk humbly with God.”

In the days leading up to the vigil, President DeBenedictis issued a call to the entire Bay View community to join students, faculty and staff for the service at 8:15 this morning. In an invitation to parents, alumnae and friends of the Academy, President DeBenedictis wrote, “As a school that is dedicated to educating girls and young women, we wish to share our strength and solidarity with the Nigerian schoolgirls.” For those who could not join the vigil in person, she offered an alternative: “We ask you to please take a moment, wherever you are, to pause at 8:15 AM and pray for the kidnapped schoolgirls and their families…so that the entire Bay View community, near and far, may join in at one time to lend thousands of voices and hearts in prayer.”

Sister Elizabeth Hathaway, RSM (East Freetown, RI), Upper School Campus Minister, provided a reflection and prayer for those who could not attend. It was distributed to over 4,000 people via the Bay View website, Constant Contact, Facebook and Twitter. Sister Liz and Jeanne Nadeau (Swansea, MA), Middle School Campus Minister, were also instrumental in the planning of the Bring Back Our Girls prayer service.

The Bay View community will continue to pray for the safe return of the kidnapped schoolgirls, and for the right to education for girls and young women, throughout the world.