"If I can be of service . . . in any part of the globe, I would willingly do all in my power," echo the words of Nano Nagle (1718-1784), foundress of the Sisters of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Presentation Sisters have taken these words seriously in their mission and ministry from the beginning of their small foundations in Ireland to their separate North American communities. These days Presentation Sisters in North American are anything, but separate; however, that wasn't always the case.

Tracing this movement toward greater communication, we can return to 1952 when Pope Pius XII invited all North American religious communities to converge at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana with the intention of encouraging stronger connections within and among them. Thinking earnestly about his request, Presentation leadership met the following year on March 25, 1953, for its first historic meeting in Dubuque, Iowa, at Mt. Loretto. This gathering became known as the "North American Conference." After fifty years, the North American Conference has taken another new step into the future. Given the shifts in religious life and the potency of their spirit and work, the leadership teams saw themselves poised on the threshold of exciting possibilities. In January, 2002, the North American Conference was christened with a new name, "The Conference of Presentation Sisters." The leadership now envisioned the new role that Presentation women can play in local, regional, national and international issues. The purposes of the Conference remain the same: to provide for collaboration of the members on matters of mutual interest, to promote unity, to strengthen the spirit of Nano Nagle, and to encourage the works of the sisters to fulfill the mission in the Church. In other words: greater collaboration, connection, and communion. The newly-formed Conference represents more than eight hundred Presentation Sisters from Aberdeen (South Dakota), Dubuque (Iowa), Fargo (North Dakota), and St. John's (Newfoundland), New Windsor (New York, Staten Island (New York), and San Francisco (California), and the United States Province of the Union (Los Angeles, California).

The Executive Director position is one of the visible signs that occurred as a result of the changes in the Conference. Sister Monica Miller, a San Francisco Presentation Sister, was named as the Executive Director with the hope that the purposes and agenda will consistently advance. Creating this position will enable leadership teams a resource for generating processes and other means for North American Presentations to bond around a common goal. Sister Monica strives to do this as she visits each community to become acquainted with their unique histories, programs and ministries, including the hopes and dreams of the members. Her long range goals focus on organizing an inter-community gathering, called the 2006 Presentation Convergence, at the University of St Thomas in St. Paul, Minnesota, (June 29 - July 2, 2006) and Conference website with links to each North American Presentation community.

The Conference also created the beginning of a new infrastructure, the Executive Team, to share the responsibilities of the Conference. Elected by The Conference, the roles of President, Vice-President and Secretary/Treasurer have varying terms of office which are contingent on their term of office in their communities. The team, once elected, discusses and decides who among them will handle those roles and responsibilities. This year, Sister Elena Hoye (Dubuque) is President, Sister Pam Chiesa (San Francisco) is Treasurer, and Sister Kathryn Geisel (New Windsor) is Secretary. The Executive Director is accountable to the Executive Team.

The IPA (International Presentation Association) Representative is ,likewise, elected from among and by The Conference for a term of four years. Sister Betty Rae Lee (Newfoundland) is the present representative. With our increasing awareness of ourselves as global citizens, comes the responsibility of being formed and informed by the reality of our interrelatedness with all of creation.

The Conference has traditionally met once a year. George Eliot once said, "It is never too late to become what you could have been." The Conference of Presentation Sisters has evolved into the form we see today because of the dream of a group of Presentation sisters in 1953. Who can tell what our dreams of today will be for the Sisters, the Associates and the world of tomorrow?