By Mary Knapke

DAYTON DEANERY - A crowded meeting room at the Dayton International Peace Museum was hushed except for the sound of quiet sniffling last week during the opening of an exhibit honoring Notre Dame de Namur Sister Dorothy Stang.

CT/JEFF UNROE

Joe Kunkel, coordinator of the Dorothy Stang exhibit, describes the different artifacts to Sisters Teresita Weind and Elizabeth Schaad both from Mount Notre Dame in Cincinnati.

Sister Dorothy served in the Brazilian Amazon as an advocate for the poor and the environment for nearly four decades. She was murdered in February 2005 by gunmen hired by ranchers who opposed her environmental efforts. To date, three men have been convicted in her murder. Originally from Dayton, Sister Dorothy had been a Sister of Notre Dame de Namur for 55 years.

The documentary, filmed by British students Sam Clements and James Newton, features interviews with Sister Dorothy and closes with scenes from her funeral.

"That was the first time I have really re-lived that," said an emotional Notre Dame de Namur Sister Jo Anne Depweg following the film.

A friend of Sister Dorothy's and a fellow missionary in Brazil, Sister Jo Anne described the crowds that came out in support of the slain nun in the days following her murder. In one instance, crowds gathered in Belém, the capital of the state of Pará, clapping and chanting, "Dorothy lives forever."

In addition to her mission work, Sister Jo Anne serves on the Dorothy Committee, a group committed to keeping Sister Dorothy's legacy in the spotlight.

The exhibit at the peace museum "will help people remember Sister Dorothy," she said. "Many people in this area know her story, but the exhibit will keep her memory alive."

Congregational spokeswoman Notre Dame de Namur Sister Elizabeth Bowyer also addressed the group, touching on Sister Dorothy's efforts to "disturb an unjust peace" between wealthy ranchers and landless peasants, as well as her legacy, even as "a regular person from Ohio."

"We want people to be touched by her life and her story," she said. "If, as an ordinary Christian, she was able to work on something so valuable, then so can we."
Clements, the filmmaker who visited Sister Dorothy shortly before her death, said in an e-mail message that "Sister Dorothy was an incredible person, and someone that will always inspire me.... (She) reinforced my belief that we each have all the potential and all the power we ever need to stand up, live our best, and make a massive positive difference to others and to the world."

Sister Dorothy's exhibit at the Dayton International Peace Museum features information about her life and work and occupies part of the museum's room dedicated to Daytonian peace activists.

"The whole concept behind the museum is to have a space to make peace," said director Steve Fryburg. "We want to create a place for peacemakers and promote the rich history of nonviolence in the world."

Fryburg, a military veteran and retired police officer from Cleveland, said including an exhibit about Sister Dorothy was an obvious choice for the museum.

"Sister Dorothy saw that with ecology, we have to make peace with our environment, because we are our environment. If we don't take care of it, we're not going to survive," he said.

Fryburg said the Dayton International Peace Museum is one of only two peace museums in the U.S., compared with 144 military museums. It is also part of an international network of peace museums, along with facilities in more than 30 other countries.

"A lot of time, people look at the world and it seems overwhelming and confusing," he said. "They think one person can't change the world. We hope to inspire them in some small way to realize that small, everyday things such as kindness and being a good friend contribute to peace."

Sister Dorothy, a naturalized Brazilian citizen, was recognized by the state of Pará with a woman of the year award in 2004. Since her death, she has been honored by governments and organizations around the world, including a resolution by the U.S. Congress to honor her life and work. Sister Dorothy will also be honored next month when she receives a marker in Dayton's Walk of Fame, located in the historic Wright-Dunbar neighborhood.

Two books on Sister Dorothy are forthcoming: Martyr of the Amazon: The Life of Sister Dorothy Stang, published by Orbis Books, is scheduled for release in October; The Greatest Gift: The Courageous Life and Martyrdom of Sister Dorothy Stang will be released by Doubleday in January.

"Because she was so simple and so down-to-earth, Dorothy would be surprised that her story and her work has been an inspiration to so many people," said Sister Joanne Seiser. Noting the current media attention on environmental issues, Sister Joanne said that Sister Dorothy was "on the growing edge, but without meaning to be. She just wanted to help people."

The Dayton International Peace Museum is located at 208 W. Monument Ave. in downtown Dayton. For more information, visit www.daytonpeacemuseum.org.