Sr. Mercedes was raised in Brooklyn, NY in a Dominican immigrant family. She studied International Relations and Spanish at the University of Southern California.  Sr. Mercedes has always had a great love of travel and personal encounter, leading her to work for a Manhattan-based non-profit, planning trips and bringing medical supplies and doctors to Cuba and Nicaragua prior to entering religious life.  Sr. Mercedes entered the Dominican Sisters of Mary, Mother of the Eucharist in Ann Arbor in 2011 and professed her Final Vows in 2019.  Sister has taught Spanish and Humanities at a high school in Phoenix, was a librarian at the Pontifical North American College in Rome, and currently serves as the Vocations Director for her community. 

The Dominican Sisters of Mary, Mother of the Eucharist, was founded in 1997 in response to Pope St. John Paul II’s call for a New Evangelization. Based in Ann Arbor, MI, the Sisters embrace the centuries-old life and tradition of the Dominican Order, preaching and teaching the truth, beauty, and goodness of God—leading others to encounter Christ. The Sisters teach throughout the country, provide online and print catechesis materials through Openlight Media, and give talks and retreats.  The Sisters’ apostolic life is based on contemplation, nourished by daily Eucharistic Adoration and devotion to Our Lady in Marian consecration.