Founders Week 2015 to Honor ‘Faces of Courage’

The campus community will celebrate the legacy, vision and values of Duquesne’s Spiritan founders throughout the University’s annual Founders Week from Saturday, Jan. 31, through Friday, Feb. 6. This year’s theme, Faces of Courage, honors those who personify courage in how they overcome odds, build a more just world or simply bring joy to others.

“A face of courage is not always a famous person,” said the Rev. Raymond French, C.S.Sp., vice president for mission and identity. “It can often be that person you see in your everyday life, who summons courage to overcome personal obstacles or makes a positive difference in the lives of those around them. In the spirit of our founders Claude Poullart des Places and Francis Libermann, Founders Week will celebrate these people and their inspirational tales.”

Faculty, staff and students are invited to honor the Spiritans by attending the following events:

Saturday, Jan. 31

  • 7 p.m., men’s basketball game: Duquesne Dukes vs. George Mason University Patriots, A.J. Palumbo Center

Sunday, Feb. 1

  • 11 a.m., Mass, University Chapel
  • Noon, brunch, Africa Room, Union, RSVP is required.

Monday, Feb. 2

  • Noon, Mass: Feast Day of Venerable Francis Libermann, University Chapel
  • Following Mass, Faces of Courage lunch, Africa Room. Student speakers will discuss how they have been faces of courage for their families and friends through the struggles they have faced. RSVP is required.
  • 1 to 3 p.m., free ice cream sundaes, third floor, Union

Tuesday, Feb. 3

  • Noon, Stories with the Spiritans, Commuter Lounge, Union. Spiritan priests will present stories from their time in the missions and discuss who served as “faces of courage” for them.

Thursday, Feb. 5

  • Noon, Founders Week Luncheon: Living the Mission, Africa Room, Union. Young alumni will share stories about how they live out Duquesne’s Catholic Spiritan mission, both locally and globally. RSVP is required.
  • 4 p.m., Faces of Courage: Sr. Rosemary Nyirumbe, Africa Room, Union. Sister Nyirumbe (SLPA’08), who was named to Time Magazine’s list of the Top 100 Most Influential People of 2014, will tell her story of helping to rebuild the lives of young people who were traumatized by the civil war in Uganda. Refreshments will be served.

Friday, Feb. 6

For more information on Founders Week, contact the Division of Mission and Identity at 412.396.5097 or visit www.duq.edu/mission. RSVPs, which are required for all lunch and learn events and the Spiritan reception, can be made through DORI.