Sissy/Katherine “Thomas Mary” Corr

Sister Sissy Corr, SNDdeN  was born into a large and loving family and extravagantly blessed by their love. Through Notre Dame, God called her and gave her many opportunities to grow her heart as wide as the world…the family of God. “From my early experiences in teaching and social work, I have continually grown in the belief that all of life is about helping each other to realize and celebrate our God-given potential,” she wrote on the occasion of her Jubilee in 2019.

She was inspired as a young Sister in Atlanta by Martin Luther King Jr. and the civil rights movement. “His gospel call to act justly, walk humbly and love tenderly as brothers and sisters in Christ helped me to see that we are all one family in God. This understanding was nurtured in prayer and by reflecting on the writing of St. Julie and Thomas Merton. Through work with Catholic Charities and discernment with Sisters of Notre Dame, the Spirit led me to embrace the social concerns of the Church.”

She received training in sociology and community organizing, which taught her how to bring people together to work together for the common good, the family of God.

From 1981 to 1991, she founded and coordinated Jobs with Peace, a non-profit organization in Baltimore. In 1994, she became the Executive Director of Notre Dame Mission Volunteers. Over the next 22 years with the SNDdeN, she and her colleagues built a nationwide network to empower the poor through education. In partnership with AmeriCorps, they were able to grow the full-time volunteer corps to 400+ members. “As we serve in the Spirit of Jesus, we learn from our brothers and sisters while assisting them to develop their gifts,” she says.

When she was ready to retire, she received a new call from God, when Notre Dame Mission Volunteers invited her to go to Haiti and join Sister Jeanette and work with the Sisters and Brothers there. “The people wanted jobs and they had a plan. A bakery plan. So we built a bakery, and the miracles continued. Today the Notre Dame bakery employs 45 “sisters and brothers.” Together we produce and sell many bags of bread. Thank you to all the Sisters, friends, and families who have supported us. This helps many families in Haiti.”

Updated 2025