A diamond in the rough
January 22, 2026 6:23 PM
“The best kept secret” is how Sister Joanne O’Regan describes Wellspring, a hidden gem of the StFX campus. There has been a long-standing relationship between the Sisters of Saint Martha of Antigonish and StFX, and the Wellspring Centre on campus is a result of this bond.
Wellspring is located on the second floor of Morrison Hall and can be accessed by a side door to the left of Mini Moe’s Cafe. The space, provided by the university, is decorated with the sisters’ homey touch and welcoming atmosphere.
A week at Wellspring consists of daily usage of the space by the students for studying or eating lunch. The sisters provide bread for toast, condiments, tea, coffee and juice.
During the evenings, Wellspring hosts many diverse groups of people such as the Muslim community, on and off campus. They normally come for prayers on Fridays, and the teaching of religious education to the children of the community and other community building activities throughout the weeknights.
“As long as a group or individual can fit themselves into the focus of Wellspring, we welcome any group. We do this through dialogue,” says Sister Joanne. Other groups use the space for meditation practice and teaching, and also Tai Chi.
A large part of Wellspring is the Taize Prayer sessions that are held the last Wednesday of every month. Taize Prayer is a form of meditation from the Christian tradition. Everyone is always welcome and newcomers are encouraged.
As well as religious groups, many professors use the space for a more informal way of teaching groups of students. “We want to be as inclusive as possible.” Sister Joanne added when describing a typical week at Wellspring.
The student body should feel welcome at Wellspring. Their focus is, “To enhance the life of the StFX community though a welcoming Martha presence conducive to the development of persons.” This statement can also be found on their website that is linked to the StFX homepage.
The sisters have even developed a Facebook page which allows students to learn about events that are occurring in the near future, what Wellspring is all about and on top of that, get a bit of inspiration for the day.
“We are here for the whole community, student body, staff and faculty. We are a continuation of over 100 years of history with the university of being welcoming and available and creating spaces where people can come and find peace, and feel at home,” said Sister Joanne.
Since the early 1900’s, the Sisters of St. Martha have had a strong alliance with the StFX community. The ministry on campus has changed, as it started with domestic work with a small group of 15 sisters. A sister was one of the first to be the director of nursing here at StFX.
There is a very large involvement between the Coady Institute and the sisters and it has been that way for many years now. They have always been involved in various levels of education but presently the school community only consists of two sisters, Sister Joanne and Sister Marion, who work at Wellspring.
Wellspring is a charitable organization that is run by the Sisters of Martha, and the sisters provide all of the furniture, food and spirit. The university decided to provide the space so there would be a close relationship with the sisters.
Sister Joanne states that her favorite part of Wellspring is “the diversity among the people who visit Wellspring and the opportunity to engage with people from all walks of life.” The two sisters split the time they spend at Wellspring and are currently both there three times a week.
The future of Wellspring is very unpredictable. Hopefully the school continues to support Wellspring.
“I hope it continues to grow with the university and meet the needs of the university, what ever those needs are. We desire to keep the presence of ministry here and consequently, the spirit of the place continues. Our “care-ism” will continue and remain open to the needs of the university. We are here to serve the university community,” said Sister Joanne.
Wellspring is in fact a wonderful getaway and welcomes every student with open arms. It is a place of peace and prosperity and is a great place to catch up on work or even just relax and read a book.