For the first time, Catholic sisters return land to a Tribal nation

“This return represents more than the restoration of land — it is the restoration of balance, dignity, and our sacred connection to the places our ancestors once walked.”
On a sunny afternoon on the shores of Trout Lake in northern Wisconsin, a Catholic sister and a Tribal president sat together at a table and made history.

Two years ago, the Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration, a Catholic congregation, had approached the Lac Du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, a part of the Ojibwe Nation, and the original caretakers of the land, with an unheard of proposition: Would they like a piece of their land back?

The question took the tribe by surprise, said Araia Breedlove, their public relations director. They had never had a private property owner offer up a piece of land, much less Catholic sisters. But after ironing out the details, the two parties were able to close the deal last Friday.

With a flick of a pen, Sister Sue Ernster signed a document to formalize the land transfer with Tribal President John D. Johnson Sr. for a two-acre lakefront property that the sisters had owned since 1966. The appraised value for the land known as Marywood, which includes a retreat center and cabins, was $2.6 million. It was sold back to the tribe for just $30,000, the price the sisters paid to buy it.

https://www.dcreport.org/2025/11/09/for-the-first-time-catholic-sisters-return-land-to-a-tribal-nation/