Tag: Cait De Mott Grady

Running and Reckoning

On By RadicalDiscipleshipIn Cloud of Witnesses, Subverting Empire2 Comments

caitBy Cait De Mott Grady, kicking off the virtual Peter De Mott Peace Trot, an annual race in Ithaca to honor the late Plowshares activist on Father’s Day

Greetings from Detroit!

For those of you who don’t know me, I’m Cait De Mott Grady. I’m Peter De Mott and Ellen Grady’s second daughter. I live in Detroit, MI where I work as a felony public defender and organizer.

It’s so good to be with all of you virtually tonight, though I long to be with you all in person. Continue reading “Running and Reckoning” →

This Sacred Work

On By RadicalDiscipleshipIn Cloud of Witnesses, Subverting EmpireLeave a comment

TeresaIn April 2016, Teresa Grady joined the Ancestors after 88 years of resisting and rising above the colonial script. This is an excerpt from the eulogy given by her granddaughter Cait De Mott Grady at the funeral mass at Immaculate Conception Church in Ithaca, New York.

My grandma who found cracks in empire and planted seeds in the rich and fertile soil that’s there. My grandma knew in her gut, in her bones, in her heart, in her spirit, that it is imperative that each of us say something, do something, speak from our specific position within the interlocking systems of oppression — patriarchy, white supremacy, capitalism, racism, militarism, materialism — systems that work to strip us all of our humanity. And that this sacred work starts with relationships.

Teresa Grady: Presente!

You Are Choosing

On By RadicalDiscipleshipIn Art as Resistance, Subverting EmpireLeave a comment

IMG_0727From officiant Cait De Mott Grady, for the wedding of Anna Joyce and Max Paskin in Ithaca, NY on September 9, 2017:

Good afternoon! My name is Cait De Mott Grady and it is my honor and privilege to welcome each of you to this most amazing day! The day when our dear Anna and Max, bravely and with great love and care and with the support of their family, friends, and community choose to commit to each other in marriage.

Today come together to actively witness, bless, and support Anna and Max as they enter this new phase of their couple-ship.

In preparation for today, I’ve been thinking deeply about Anna and Max’s choice to marry in this moment of history we find ourselves in. I’ve also been thinking a lot about stories and the truths they tell and the truths they erase. Continue reading “You Are Choosing” →

¡Grandma Teresa, PRESENTE!

On By RadicalDiscipleshipIn Biography as Theology, Cloud of Witnesses1 Comment

Grandma TeresaBy Cait De Mott Grady, a eulogy for her grandma, Teresa Jane Shaughnessy Grady (right), who died on Sunday, April 10th in her home in Ithaca, NY

I am Caithraoine Jane De Mott Grady, daughter of Ellen Grady and Peter John De Mott, granddaughter of Teresa Jane Shaughnessy and John Peter Grady, great granddaughter to Mary Baldwin and Tom Shaughnessy. Sister to Marie, Nora, and Saoirse. Cousin to Manny, Gabriel, Isaiah, Ana, Leah, Rosie, Oona, Jack (Jass), Thaddeus, Michael, Seán, Ariel, Madailein, and Clare. Niece to John, Laurie, Clare, Paul, Larry, Mary Anne, Teresa, Oscar and Cesar. Continue reading “¡Grandma Teresa, PRESENTE!” →

Witnessing

On By RadicalDiscipleshipIn Biography as Theology4 Comments

12009754_1646585842290454_7763670513119376666_nBy Cait De Mott Grady. Cait De Mott Grady grew up in the Ithaca Catholic Worker Community in Ithaca, NY and has been working as an organizer on political and environmental campaigns since graduating from college in 2012. Cait moved to Detroit this past June and is inspired and humbled by all the people who work to make the Beloved Community a reality.

Do not be daunted by the enormity of the world’s grief.
Do justly, now.
Love mercy, now.
Walk humbly, now.
You are not obligated to complete the work,
but neither are you free to abandon it.
– The Talmud

I woke up early this morning to darkness and I lay there listening to night sounds – a chorus of crickets and cicadas, punctuated by the occasional engine roar or dog bark. I lay there listening and thinking of my dear friend who is facing a terminal Leukemia diagnosis. I thought about how grateful I am for his life and our friendship and how I desperately want to know that he will be by my side in the coming years, questioning, organizing, marching, imagining, and loving. Continue reading “Witnessing” →