BVM Associate
Mary Kay Craig:
Montana Peace Seeker
by Gwen Farry, BVM
“The BVMs are a Craig family ‘habit,’”
says Associate Mary Kay Craig, who still
recalls all the names of her BVM grade
school teachers in Butte, Mont. Both of
her parents were taught by BVMs at St.
Joseph and Immaculate Conception elementary schools in Butte. Her mother
and aunt, along with future BVM (St.)
Basil Byrne, attended Clarke University
in Dubuque, Iowa. The three Clarke
students often traveled together on
trips to and from Clarke to Butte during
their college years.
BVM Connection Rekindled
After high school graduation, Mary
Kay worked in advertising, marketing and
product management for both small and
major corporations, later completing a
bachelor’s degree in public policy. Disillusioned with “corporate behavior,” Mary
Kay returned to Butte in 1990.
She was soon reunited with BVMs
when she joined the local peace group.
In 1993 she shared “Siena House” with
BVMs Kathleen O’Sullivan (Donall) and
Patricia Ann (Pat) Perko (Vincent de
Paul), so named by Pat because of Mary
Kay’s and Kathleen’s tendency to “speak
truth to power” (as attributed to St. Catherine of Siena, known for her political
boldness and influence).
Referring to her peace ministry, Mary
Kay says, “I was taught by Kathleen, who
said, ‘Once you’ve read the Gospels in the
light of social justice, you can never go
back.’” During this time, Kathleen introduced Mary Kay to her future husband,
George Waring, who was then chair of
the Montana Human Rights Network.
In 2000 Mary Kay participated in
the Spirit, Commerce and Sustainability event in Missoula, Mont., where she
met BVM Gwen Farry (Leontia). Gwen
encouraged Mary Kay to become a BVM
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S A L T MAGAZINE
Mary Kay Craig and husband George Waring join supporters just before crossing the line onto the
nuclear facility at Mercury, Nev., as part of the Nevada Desert Experience. With them are (l. to r.) Mary
Kay; Bette Gambonini, BVM (Esther Mary); Fr. Jim Hogan, Missoula, Mont.; BVMs Marge Clark and Gwen
Farry (Leontia); George; and Theresa Caluori, BVM (Martin Jerome).
associate. The following year, when Associate Co-coordinators BVM Betty Voss
(Leonice) and Associate Nancy Van Anne
conducted an associate training in Montana, Mary Kay and George became BVM
associates. “I’ve become more compassionate as a result of exposure to the BVM
community and charisms,” says Mary
Kay. “I trust there is a spark of God in
everyone, even those whose behavior may
indicate otherwise.”
Living the Commitment
to Peace and Justice
Her social justice involvement is
extensive, including participation in the
November School of Americas (SOA)
vigils in 2001–02 in Fort Benning, Ga.,
with her husband. “The need for prayer
and discernment before undertaking
action was learned from BVMs,” says
Mary Kay. “For example, my husband
and I separated from the crowd at the
Pax Christi Nevada Desert Experience.
We prayed for guidance and discussed
all the potential outcomes if we chose to
walk across the line onto the nuclear base
at Mercury, Nev.
“BVMs Bette Gambonini [Esther
Mary] and Theresa Caluori [Martin
Jerome] held our hands as we approached
the base and Native Americans blessed
us as we crossed. We were arrested and
held several hours in huge cages. That
walk helped us better know ourselves,
and brought attention to the problem of
nuclear weapons when a full-page story
appeared in the Butte Weekly about reasons
for our civil disobedience.”
Mary Kay was one of the first members of the Shareholder Education and
Advocacy (SEA) group, a BVM initiative
established in 2001 that addresses corporate social responsibility issues. As a “charter member,” she helped the group write
its policies and procedures document and
is active in shareholder meetings, particularly the shareholder campaign against
violent video games with retailers and
video game producers.
Because of her work on this project
Mary Kay was asked to assist the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility
(ICCR) members in its ongoing work to
remove the name of a sports team because
it is “disparaging to Native Americans.”
Mary Kay Craig is not only a dedicated researcher around justice issues, but
she is also a passionate seeker for peace
and justice. “I pray each day to be guided
by Christ as I struggle to understand
social and economic problems so that I
might be able to help others come to solutions that are peaceful and nonviolent.”
About the author: Gwen Farry, BVM (Leontia)
is a volunteer at the 8th Day Center for Justice
in Chicago.