Adrian Dominican Sister, Sister Mary Soher who Served in Archdiocese of San Francisco Marks Jubilee
The Adrian Dominican Congregation celebrates the dedication and commitment of 53 Sisters who in 2022 mark their Jubilees, their milestone years of service and dedication to the Church and the Congregation. The 2022 Jubilee Class includes one Sister celebrating 80 years, 11 Sisters celebrating 75 years; 16 Sisters celebrating 70 years; 18 Sisters celebrating 60 Sisters years; three Sisters celebrating 50 years; and four Sisters celebrating 25 years.
Sister Mary Soher, OP, a native of San Francisco, is celebrating 25 years in religious life. She grew up in Bartlesville, Oklahoma and in Kansas City and St. Louis. She graduated in 1983 from Blue Valley High School in Stanley, Kansas and went on to earn her bachelor’s degree in communications at Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas.
Sister Mary remained in San Antonio until 1992, serving at a television station. From there she went to Newport Beach, California, where she worked as a Satellite Network Coordinator until 1994 and then as a beach lifeguard and swim instructor in Los Angeles until 1996. She entered the Adrian Dominican Congregation on September 8, 1996; professed her first vows in
Adrian on August 8, 1999; and professed her final vows at Barry University on April 18, 2004.
Sister Mary earned a master’s degree in pastoral studies from Catholic Theological Union Chicago, 2003, and a doctorate in management at Colorado Technical University, Colorado Springs, 2013.
She served in various capacities at Barry University in Miami, Florida, sponsored by the Adrian Dominican Sisters, from 1999 to 2005. She then served in Vocations Outreach as part of the Formation Team for the Adrian Dominican Sisters, at the Motherhouse in Adrian, Michigan.
In 2013, Sister Mary was named Co-Executive Director of the National Catholic Sisters Initiative, which in 2014 started the annual National Catholic Sisters Month in March, 2013-2016. She then became Director of Campus Ministry for Dominican University of California, sponsored by the San Rafael Dominican Sisters, 2016-2021. “At both Barry University and Dominican University of California I fell in love with the students and with the university community because in both cases people were so student-focused and so committed to helping these young adults discover their strength and their gifts,” Sister Mary said.
Sister Mary was elected in June 2021 to serve as part of a leadership team for a new Mission Chapter of the Adrian Dominican Sisters, based in Chicago. She serves as Mission Prioress, along with Sister Mary Priniski, OP, Chapter Prioress, and Sister Mary Jane Lubinski, OP, Mission Prioress.
Sister Mary said she has been especially influenced over the years through her involvement in the Dominican High Schools Preaching Conference, which every summer draws students from Dominican high schools across the United States to learn how to preach with their lives. She served in logistics and as mentor for the conference from 1999 to 2008; the next year, she served as Director until her election to leadership of the Adrian Dominican Sisters.
The Dominican Sisters of Adrian are a Congregation of about 440 vowed women religious whose roots go back to St. Dominic in the 13th century. The sisters minister in 22 states and in the Dominican Republic, Mexico, Norway, and the Philippines. The Vision of the Adrian Dominican Sisters is to “seek truth, make peace, reverence life.”