Alumnae Update

Dear Fellow Ursuline Alumnae,

I hope you all had a very Merry Christmas and that you have a safe and blessed 2009. Throughout our celebrations this week, let us please remember Marta Bott and her family in our prayers. As you probably know, Ms. Bott has been battling breast cancer, which sadly took her life on Sunday night. Ms. Bott served as a leader for Ursuline for over fifteen years and she will be missed by all.

Please see below a letter from our Academy President, Gretchen Z. Kane, which contains details regarding services for Ms. Bott. If you’d like to read an article about Ms. Bott from the Times Picayune, you may click here.

Sincerely yours,

Cara D’Antoni ‘90
Alumnae Director

Dear Ursuline Family,

Ursuline Academy mourns the death of Marta Bott who passed away on Sunday, Dec. 28, 2008. Visitation will be held at the Shrine of Our Lady of Prompt Succor beginning at 11 a.m. on Friday, Jan. 2, 2009 with a Mass to follow at 1 p.m.

It is very difficult to think of Ursuline Academy New Orleans without Marta Bott. For over fifteen years, Marta’s dedication and commitment to Ursuline education has contributed to its health and vitality. Her leadership in the Academy’s high school was shaped by an intense work ethic and a deep faith in God’s love, nourished by the spirituality of St. Angela. The life of an Ursuline administrator centers on the imitation of Jesus, focusing on those priorities which constitute Christ’s mind, heart, values, priorities and loves. We see in Jesus Christ a loving obedience, an open-hearted desire to find and to pursue how God wants other men and women to be forgiven, to be free, to utilize all their talents and opportunities in ways which build up this world as a place where faith, justice, peace and love can flourish. I cannot think of an Ursuline administrator who more closely imitated Christ, who represented that model for living that St. Angela offers us; whose sense of humor and energy were surpassed only by her service to others.

We will surely remember Marta as a loving and devoted mother, a dedicated educator and an individual of great strength and courage. While she was a woman of specific tastes, strong opinions and a hard drive, she was an excellent listener who respected and incorporated the opinions and ideas of others. Extremely independent, she was also a team player. And, her competitive spirit flourished in the world of girls high school athletics.

I sincerely hope that in her final earthly days, she was able to feel the warm admiration and indebted gratitude of her many companions in the ministry of teaching – admiration for who she was and gratitude for her many accomplishments as an Ursuline leader. May she now fully enjoy the company of Jesus – a companionship that she modeled for us – a companionship that she called us to – a blessed companionship indeed.

Yours in Christ,
Gretchen Zibilich Kane