RALEIGH, N.C. — The Catholic Community of St. Francis of Assisi welcomed 1999 Nobel Peace Prize nominee Sister Helen Prejean, educator and anti-death penalty activist and author, on April 22. Her book Dead Man Walking was nominated for a 1993 Pulitzer Prize and made into an acclaimed movie with actress Susan Sarandon.
Fifteen years since beginning her crusade, Sr. Helen has witnessed five executions in Louisiana. As the founder of Survive, a victim’s advocacy group in New Orleans, she continues to counsel not only inmates on death row, but also families of murder victims. Her most recent book is The Death of Innocence: An Eyewitness Account of Wrongful Executions. More than 800 people listened to Sr. Helen’s presentation about truth and reconciliation.
— Donna is liturgical communications specialist at St. Francis of Assisi Church in Raleigh.