The six founding Sisters of Valley of Our Lady Monastery who journeyed to Madison from their home in Switzerland nearly 70 years ago probably never imagined how far their community would come.
They came at the invitation of Bishop William P. O’Connor of Madison, who was eager to have a community of cloistered Nuns in the newly formed Diocese of Madison.
The Swiss Nuns brought with them the centuries-old traditions of their Cistercian Order and a commitment to living them out faithfully in the modern world here in Wisconsin.
Those timeless traditions continue to form a foundation of faith that provides evidence of beauty and life-giving devotion.
‘Hidden,’ but active
Though their contemplative and monastic way of life is one of being “hidden with Christ in God,” this hiddenness does not represent aloofness from the rest of humanity, but instead facilitates an even deeper spiritual communion with others, and participates in the mission of the Church.
As St. John Paul II emphasized in an address to cloistered Nuns, “There is an intimate connection between prayer and the spreading of the Kingdom of God, between prayer and the conversion of hearts, between prayer and the fruitful reception of the saving and uplifting Gospel message.”
The Sisters are witnesses to God’s love and the self-gift He invites.
They are signs of peace, hope, and love in a world at war with itself, in need of prayer now more than perhaps at any other time in history.
For the glory of God
The community of Valley of Our Lady Monastery, now grown to more than 20 members, has been occupying a collection of buildings intended to be temporary, some dating to the 1800s.
After years of prayerful discernment, and some limited fundraising success, the Nuns began a capital campaign in earnest in 2018 to build a much-needed new monastery — an overall effort more than 20 years in the making.
The fundraising target was $18 million and the plan was to build in two phases with an initial goal of $12 million.
Early and unanticipated campaign success helped grow momentum for their efforts and after reaching their initial goal in December of 2020, the Sisters made the bold decision to move forward with one-phase construction.
The pandemic did not lessen the generosity of their supporters and they raised the needed $18 million by January 2022.
However, the pandemic greatly impacted construction costs.
Because of unprecedented inflation, the budget grew to $24.5 million.
While many other projects were paused or canceled altogether, with the steadfast power of prayer and through the financial support of many generous contributors, excavation and construction began with much excitement in September 2022.
Construction has continued at a rapid pace. Bids for each part of the work came in unpredictably high.
Value engineering reduced every possible aspect of the project, but costs continued to increase, with the final project cost coming in just over $26 million.
In spite of all the challenges and with the help of God, thus far they have raised just over $25 million, exceeding all expectations, with the vast majority of the funds in the bank.
As they approach the finish line, an incredibly generous donor has pledged a wonderful $500,000 matching gift if the Sisters can raise an additional $500,000 before the end of the year to help them meet their facility construction costs.
The Sisters hope to move into to their much-needed new home in January of 2024, with work on the chapel scheduled for completion later in the spring.
The Nuns are grateful to God and to all their benefactors that this new monastery has become a reality.
Built to house 30 Nuns, with adequate space for making altar bread, an expanded infirmary, and a chapel built in the Cistercian tradition, the new monastery will provide the community space to grow and flourish in their contemplative, monastic vocation for many generations of Nuns to come.
If you have not already done so, you are encouraged to visit the Sisters’ website to see how you can help and to view photos and videos of the new monastery’s progress: build.valleyofourlady.org/news