On February 2, 2015, the Mercedarian Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament officially welcomed Yvelyne Bernard as the newest member of their community. Originally from in New York, Yvelyne moved to Florida when she was teenager. After college, she moved to Louisiana and worked in campus ministry. On a Come & See weekend, she met the Mercedarian sisters in Baton Rouge and the rest is history.The sisters say that right from the get-go, Yvelyne fit in like she had been there for years. So many times, religious have said upon visiting their future community for the first time—I knew I was home the minute I entered the building.
During the ceremony, held on the Feast of the Presentation (February 2), Yvelyne’s parents were able to be in attendance. The sisters said, “Normally, the ceremony is closed, but her parents had never visited 
before, so this was a perfect opportunity for them to have peace of mind and heart, to know that she is safe and happy. It was a beautiful day. We are grateful to God for blessing us with vocations to our community. We humbly pray that vocations continue to come. We have a couple of women who are visiting and others who are interested or planning on visiting. Keep these women in your prayers. May they be docile to the promptings of the Holy Spirit in their lives.”