The Notre Dame Sisters are a group of consecrated Catholic women. As an apostolic order, their prayer life is made manifest through their service to their community. Named after “Our Lady,” the Sisters model their lives after Mary, mother of Jesus. In their eyes, Mary was the first apostle, instigator of Jesus’ first miracle, present throughout his crucifixion and death, and a wise counselor to the early Church. First arriving to the United States in 1910, the Notre Dame sisters traveled from Bohemia and Moravia to serve newly arrived Czech immigrants in the Midwest. The sisters taught at St. Wenceslaus School in Dodge, Nebraska, St. Joseph School in Chelsea, Iowa, and St. Ludmila School in Cedar Rapids, Iowa before purchasing Seven Oaks Farm in Florence, where the Motherhouse still stands today. In 1926, the sisters founded Notre Dame Academy, which would merge with Rummel High School in 1974 to form Roncalli High School. The service of the Notre Dame sisters is extensive and includes teaching at Catholic schools throughout Nebraska and Iowa, including on Pine Ridge Reservation, opening a shelter for abused women, providing housing for refugee communities, and contributing to the Coalition on Human Trafficking, among other notable projects. In 1997, property at Seven Oaks was converted into low income senior housing, which is still operational today.