Who We Are

[Click on the image above to download a PDF that shows the names of the Sisters in our Community.]

We are a community of 81 Benedictine Women in Yankton, South Dakota, who work, pray, play and celebrate together.

We are women who live in monastic community according to the Rule of St. Benedict with its 1500 years of lived tradition
We are women who profess obedience, stability and conversion of life
We are women led by a prioress, who is the spiritual leader of our community, and one whom we believe is a voice and presence of Christ in our lives
We are women of the Dakota prairies who trace our roots to the Swiss community of Maria Rickenbach, nestled on the side of a picturesque Alp
We are women, who since 1880, have ministered to God, God’s people and each other beginning in Maryville, Missouri and then in the Dakotas and beyond
We are women who strive for a balanced life of prayer, work, and recreative leisure in our lives
We are women who share our hopes and dreams, our resources and talents, our challenges and sorrows as TOGETHER WE SEEK GOD