Sister Lorraine Tiani, SNDdeN was born and raised in New Canaan, Connecticut, where she grew up in a large extended Italian family that nurtured her values of service and community. She first met the Sisters of Notre Dame at age six when her parents enrolled her in St. Aloysius School, followed by Central Catholic High School in Norwalk, Connecticut. She continued her education with the Sisters and received her Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education from Emmanuel College in Boston. She also discovered her propensity for languages, which she would put to good use in her later ministries.
Inspired by her father’s example of service as a policeman and stories of him working with high school students and her mother’s work for nearly 50 years in the New Canaan Library and as a caregiver, Sister Lorraine felt a calling to religious life. She began to consider a vocation to religious life in high school, with an assignment to choose and write about a scripture passage, leading her to research and learn about women who committed to giving their lives to others. She remembers the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur always being joyful in school.
Sister Lorraine‘s love for the poor resulted from her involvement in a summer service project in the Appalachian Mountains of Kentucky during her novitiate. In collaboration with the Sisters of the Holy Childhood, she made pastoral visits and organized programs for the children. After her first profession of vows, Sister Lorraine taught Grades K-3 at St. Justin School in Hartford, Connecticut, where she discovered the beauty of the Jamaican culture in the children and parents.
Sister Lorraine's ministry has been diverse and impactful. She was called to minister internationally with the Sisters of Notre Dame in the Italian Unit in Rome, Italy. She left her home soil in Connecticut to teach at the Istituto Giulia Billiart, one of Rome’s most culturally diverse neighborhoods. She developed practical methods and a curriculum for a foreign language program in English and shared her musical gifts at liturgy with the children and the Sunday parish community worshipping in the Sisters’ chapel. Her ministry was not restricted to teaching and included service as school treasurer and member of the Unit Leadership Team.
In Rome, Sister Lorraine met Sisters of Notre Dame from all around the globe. Her experience there was a challenge as the Sisters Notre Dame de Namur were developing in Rome, but it was one of her most rewarding missions. "Rome was my favorite mission. I went there as a young person and spent the bulk of my most fruitful years there, and it had the most influence on who I’ve become as a religious and a woman," she reflects.
Since her return to the States, Sr. Lorraine has worked in a variety of ministries, including volunteering as an assistant to the coordinator of health benefits for the Sisters of the Connecticut Province, teaching first grade at Holy Cross School in Springfield, Massachusetts, and joining the support staff in the Safe Environment Office for the Protection of Children of the Archdiocese of Hartford.
Sister Lorraine remains active through volunteering. She drives Sisters at Julie House, an assisted living facility in Windsor, Connecticut, providing one-on-one support and sharing with older Sisters. She also volunteers at St. Patrick—St. Anthony Church in Hartford, participating in their sandwich ministry to feed people experiencing homelessness and serving as a Eucharistic minister.
Sister Lorraine's hope for the future lies in the continued reflection with Associates on the signs of the times and addressing injustices in the world. She believes in the power of community and the enduring spirit of the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur to bring about positive change.
Reflecting on her 50 years of service, Sister Lorraine is grateful for her call to live a life of service with her Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur, Associates and colleagues. "This has been a blessing because it’s supported me in living out the gospel.”
Her favorite quote from St. Julie Billiart is: "We must have great courage in the century in which we live. Great souls are needed, having the interests of God at heart. But we can’t do that, we can’t give what we haven’t got if we are not filled with the Good God. And if we aren’t, then we can’t let our fullness overflow into the hearts of those who come to us."