Sisters of Loretto Elect Des Moines Native To Lead Congregation

July 18, 2024

Front row, from left, are Sister Mary Margaret Murphy SL, Sister Mary E. "Buffy" Boesen SL and Sister Kathy Wright SL. Back row, from left, are Sister Maribah Ishaq SL, Jane German CoL, Sister Cathy Smith SL, Sister Donna Mattingly SL and Sister Cathy Mueller SL. Not shown are Loretto Co-members Jackie Diego-Medina and the Rev. Marty Lally.

The Sisters of Loretto elected Sister Mary E. “Buffy” Boesen SL as the congregation’s next president during its July 5-10 Delegate Assembly in Louisville, Ky. Sister Buffy will take office on Sept. 15 to begin a four-year term, succeeding current President Sister Barbara Nicholas SL.

Also elected this past week were Sister Mary Margaret Murphy SL, as vice president on the Loretto Executive Committee (EC), along with newly elected EC members Sister Donna Mattingly SL, Sister Cathy Mueller SL, Sister Cathy Smith SL and Sister Kathy Wright SL. Loretto Co-members Jackie Diego-Medina, Jane German and the Rev. Marty Lally and Sister Maribah Ishaq SL were elected as members of the Loretto Community Forum, an advisory body to the president.

Sister Buffy served as president of Loretto Academy in El Paso, Texas, for more than 22 years before retiring in 2021. Throughout her ministry, she has been involved in education and community service. Sister Buffy has a background in both regular and special education, having taught in Iowa, Colorado and Kentucky. She previously served on Loretto’s EC for nine years, has served for many years as the Community’s treasurer and is chairperson of its Finance Committee and was a member of the Community’s Investment Committee for 40 years. Sister Buffy was received into Loretto in 1978. She resides in El Paso.

The Loretto Community consists of the congregation of the Sisters of Loretto and Loretto Co-members. The congregation of the Sisters of Loretto at the Foot of the Cross was founded in rural Kentucky in 1812. Today, our Sisters and Co-members continue to live out the Loretto Community’s mission to “work for justice and act for peace because the Gospel urges us.” In the United States and throughout the world, Loretto Community members serve in many fields, including education, healthcare, elder care, environmental stewardship and advocacy.