Jean Ritchie’s song, sung by Kith&Kin is offered as a reflective resource for Catholic millennial women through August.

Kith&Kin’s Kathleen McDonnell said “We’ve come to think of Cool of the Day as an eco-hymn. We’ve been singing it for more than a decade at our concerts and community events, and we’re always amazed by how powerfully it moves people, whether or not they subscribe to a particular faith. The late Jean Ritchie is one of our heroes, a great songwriter and keeper / sharer of deep folk traditions.”

Kith&kin, a musical trio comprised of singer-songwriter Ivy Mairi, her sister Martha Farquhar-McDonnell and their mother Kathleen McDonnell, is based on Toronto Island. Through singing together at countless community gatherings and celebrations over the years, and with the help of instinctive family harmony, Kathleen, Martha and Ivy developed their characteristic style, using close harmonies and spare instrumentation to create haunting arrangements of the music of Appalachia, the British Isles, and other traditions.

In 2014 kith&kin released their second CD Cool of the Day, recorded at St. Andrew-by-the-Lake church. The album features songs about water, and was named after the powerful enviro-hymn by influential American folk singer Jean Ritchie. Most recently they created The Hollow Square, an innovative music theatre production that played to sold-out audiences at the 2015 Toronto Fringe Festival.

Sr. Anne Maire Lom, OSF reflected “I love the voices, the text and the message of environmental care. Never before have we reached such a critical time of caring for our earth. May St. Francis guide us and Pope Francis remind us of our responsibility to care.”

About Franciscan Sisters of Christian Charity

Franciscan Sisters of Christian Charity serve in Catholic Health Care, Education, Parishes and Campus Ministry outreach in the Southwest, Central and Upper Midwest United States. Learn more about the Franciscan Sisters’ latest ministries and vocations at https://fscc-calledtobe.org