National Catholic Sisters Week ~ A Golden Story

Greetings from one of our Golden celebrants,

Each day of National Catholic Sisters Week, we will be sharing the story of one of our Jubilarian Sisters, those celebrating significant anniversaries in religious life!

Sister Michaeleen in Colorado. “My parents were hard-working people who loved me greatly,” she says.“Though not well-educated in a formal way, they loved learning and encouraged me to explore my many and varied interests. When I told my parents that I wanted to be a nun, they gave me their full blessing, even though that meant that they would never be grandparents.”

Feeling called to the Benedictine way of life, hospital ministry drew her to Sacred Heart in Yankton, where Sr. Michaeleen made First Profession in 1963 and Perpetual Monastic Profession in 1969. She received her B.S. in
Med Tech in 1966 from Mount Marty College and a Master’s in 1973. She enjoyed work as a Med Tech in hospitals in Parkston, Yankton and Canon City, CO and teaching at Mount Marty College. In 1981, she began study in psychology culminating in a  in 1990, and was licensed as a psychologist in 1991. She took a position at Benedictine Family Services from 1989 – 1991 and then spent 14 years in various psychological services. A hearing loss forced her to leave the field of psychology. In subsequent years, Sr. Michaeleen has have been working in Information Technology at the monastery.

Her hobbies include “birding” and photography as she finds the presence of  God in nature. Reflecting on her Golden Jubilee, she say, “As I approach my 50th  year of vowed life, I am filled with profound gratitude that, first of all, God led me to Sacred Heart Monastery, filled with living legends of holiness, humor, and happiness; and then graced my life with so many other good people who have contributed to the rich tapestry of my life.”

Blessings...and come back tomorrow for another Golden Story!