For more than four decades, Sister Mary Alice served as a missionary in the coastal region of Maceio in northeastern Brazil. She helped poor communities fight for their basic rights to land, education and healthcare.
Sister Mary Alice is the author of the book, "Our Struggle Was a Sacred Struggle." The book, first published in Portuguese and then translated, contains the oral histories of more than 60 men and women and highlights the challenges and triumphs they experienced in their effort to secure land rights during the 1980s.
In 2018, Sister Mary Alice received an honorary doctoral degree from her alma mater, Emmanuel College in Boston, for her "unwavering will to uplift those living on the margins of our global society."
Sister Mary Alice McCabe's recent ministry has taken her to the U.S.-Mexico border, where she has been working with local organizations and other Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur to help immigrants.
Sister Mary Alice was video profiled for her work at the US-Mexico border in Matamoros, MX:
She now serves as the co-coordinator for activities related to the Laudato Si' Action Platform for the U.S. East-West Province of the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur.