We welcome Ashley Stout as our new AmeriCorps service member here at Nazareth. Ashley will work alongside Carolyn Cromer in the Office of Ecological Sustainability to help advance the Sisters’ mission to care for all of creation.

Born and raised in Indianapolis, Indiana, Ashley grew up with her parents and younger brother, Kyle. Her father, an electrical engineer, encouraged her passion for environmentalism and allowed her to hang up her hand-drawn renewable energy flyers in his office at the public utility company. Her love for nature was also fueled by childhood summers spent on her grandparents’ farm in Jeffersontown, Kentucky.

Ashley majored in Environmental and Sustainability Studies at Indiana University Bloomington. During her time at IU, Ashley participated in hydrology research, helped lower-income communities in Southern Indiana obtain grants for public parks, and served as the Small Group Coordinator for the Christian Student Fellowship campus ministry.

When asked why she wanted to serve with the SCNs, Ashley replied, “I felt connected to the Sisters’ mission to care for Earth. My love for nature and the environment has always been rooted in my wonder about God’s creation, and I feel so incredibly lucky to have the opportunity to serve here at Nazareth”.

During her time at Nazareth, Ashley will assist with tracking the congregation’s greenhouse gas (carbon) emissions, remove invasive plants at Nazareth, as well as several environmental education initiatives. She will work alongside former SCN AmeriCorps member Brenden Dines as he serves in his new role with the Notre Dame Mission Volunteer Association as Site Director for the Kentucky, Ohio, and West Virginia region.

Current AmeriCorps member Ashley Stout visited by former AmeriCorps member Brenden Dines

Ashley Stout in her new office at the SCN Center