Reflections Magazine Issue #70 - Fall 2009 | Page 17

Anniversary Feature

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Karen Johnson

Terri Grierson

Gertrude “Trudy” McSorley

Karen Johnson ’04 always had a special connection
to Siena Heights – her great aunt was the legendary
Sister Ann Joachim. However, Johnson, who visited
the Adrian campus quite often in her childhood days,
decided to complete her degree at SHU’s metropolitan Detroit site. She completed her degree in 2004
and remains active with the university, including
serving as a member of the Siena Heights Alumni
Association board.

Terri Grierson, a current student in SHU’s Saginaw
Theological Studies program, is director of the Office
of Christian Service for the Catholic Diocese of
Saginaw. Her office is responsible for public discipleship, grief recovery, legislative advocacy and outreach
to parish Christian service commissions. She also
works with economically disadvantaged women in
the community and serves on the local Child Abuse
& Neglect Council. She represents the diocese on
the Michigan Catholic Rural Life Coalition and is
a community leader in social justice issues.

Gertrude “Trudy” McSorley ’70 has been a fixture
on the Siena Heights campus for five decades, first
through the theater department. For 31 years
McSorley guided the ultra-successful child drama
program, which is currently called Creative Stages.
She helped established Siena’s theater program as one
of the top in the area until taking over as Dean for
Students in 2005. She currently serves in that capacity
and is known for her loyalty to Siena Heights and is
a staunch defender of the institution’s Dominican
and Catholic tradition and heritage.

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Sister Miriam Stimson
Sister Miriam Michael Stimson, OP ’36 was the
legendary professor of chemistry who distinguished
herself in the area of research. After establishing a
research lab at Siena Heights in 1939, she conducted
research for more than 30 years, including funded
cancer research. Known at Siena as “M2”, she introduced micro methods and undergraduate research to
the classroom. In 1953, she became the first woman
since Marie Curie to lecture in science at the Sorbonne in Paris. Sister Miriam also was director of
Siena’s graduate programs from 1978-91, starting
an addiction counseling program.

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Sister Sharon Weber

Sister Sharon Weber, OP ’69 joined the chemistry
faculty in 1974, teaching for 12 years before leaving
Siena Heights to serve on the General Council of
the Adrian Dominican Sisters. She rejo