National Catholic Sisters Week ~ A Diamond Shining Bright!

Greetings from our sister celebrating 75 years of profession,

Each day of National Catholic Sisters Week, we have shared the story of our Jubilarian Sisters, those celebrating significant anniversaries in religious life!

Sister Wilma Lyle begins her autobiography by stating “My life has been an interesting and exciting one.”

Like many of her generation, S. Wilma grew up on a homesteaded farm where her parents raised their seven children. During her years at Mount Marty High School, S. Wilma felt called to be a Benedictine Sister and began convent life on August 24, 1937.

After first profession in 1939, her teaching career started with elementary and junior high schools in Glen Ulin, Richardton, and Selfridge, ND, and Hoven, Aberdeen and Yankton, SD, with many summers spent teaching in vacation schools. Sr. Wilma loved teaching and served Mount Marty College as professor in the religion department and as academic dean.

In 1964, she along with five other Sisters, spent seven years setting up and teaching in their mission school in Alta Verapaz, Guatemala. She found this to be the most enriching experience of her life. In 1973 S. Wilma was elected prioress and served two terms which she found both challenging and exhilarating. After her terms in office she resumed teaching and taking on various ministries.

Looking back on her years as a Benedictine, S. Wilma states: “I’ve been blessed and enriched in so many ways and am so grateful for the gifts of life, health, intelligence, education and experiences, especially experiences undreamed of in 1939 when I was professed.”

Blessings,

 

Curious about more of our stories? Follow this link to our "Meet the Sisters" page. You can 'click' on different sisters names to find out more about their story, our vows, and living as a Benedictine Sister! Or follow the "Vocation" link at the top of our blog to request more information! 

National Catholic Sisters Week ~ 70 Year Diamonds!

Greetings from our sisters celebrating 70 years of profession,

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

Sister Evangeline grew up on a farm near Harrold, SD with her parents and six siblings. After graduation she worked a year hoping to save for college. Little did she know then what role college was to play in her future life.

She entered Sacred Heart Convent in 1942 and found out college was included in the formation program. After a few years teaching on the elementary and high school level she earned a doctorate in philosophy from the Catholic University of America. She states her superior’s request for philosophy “had never occurred to her, but in retrospect, philosophy brought me into contact with a world of study that has made so much difference to my life.”

She then served at Mount Marty College, teaching philosophy and serving as dean of women, director of development and of financial aid, vice president of financial affairs, and a 17-year term as president. In 1989, she was appointed sub-prioress. It was a an exciting time as she became involved in future planning and development in the monastic way of life.

The February 1997 fire remains a memorable mark on her term as sub-prioress. S. Evangeline writes: “My Benedictine life has been 70 years of fulfillment in ways I never could have imagined or hoped for. To be a part of a loving community that has supported me, challenged me and given me countless opportunities for growth has been pure gift, for which I am extremely grateful.”

 Sister Marie Helene Werdel was the second of seven children having an older brother and five sisters. Her parents built their home on prairie lands east of Stephan, SD. It was there the family experienced the hardships of life during the depression, especially after the death of her father.

S. Marie Helene left the wide ranch lands of western South Dakota in response to what she felt was a call to be a Sister in 1942. After first profession as a Benedictine Sister on June 24, 1944, S. Marie Helene began what she expected to be a long teaching career. She taught in schools at Dimock, SD, Yankton, SD, Pueblo, CO, Albion, NE and Richardton, ND.

Her appointment as community procurator and business manager at Mount Marty College in 1957 led to 37 years of work, including director of maintenance at the college, director of plant operations, manager of the MMC Bookstore, and Buildings and Grounds supervisor. At the Monastery she served as sacristan for eight years. She currently helps in the Gift Shop and mail room, tutors, and enjoys keeping the birds, turkeys and squirrels from going hungry.

Of her Jubilee, S. Marie Helene says, “My years as a Benedictine have been wonderful. I am forever grateful for God’s blessing and generosity and for my community these many years. It has been more rewarding than I ever dreamed. I pray my life has been of help to others.”

We will conclude our National Catholic Sisters Week with one final Diamond...

Curious about more of our stories? Follow this link to our "Meet the Sisters" page. You can 'click' on different sisters names to find out more about their story, our vows, and living as a Benedictine Sister! Or follow the "Vocation" link at the top of our blog to request more information!

National Catholic Sisters Week ~ Polished Diamonds

Greetings from our sisters celebrating 70 years of profession,

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

 Sister Jane Frances was born in Farisita, CO, into a very religious family—three older half-sisters were vowed religious. Her faith was nurtured by her home parish in Gardner, CO. It was the influence of the Sisters who taught vacation school in Gardner that brought S. Jane Frances to Yankton in 1941.

After first profession in 1944 she was sent to work at Sacred Heart Hospital which paved the way for her mission in nursing, a profession she learned “on the job.” She was a founding member of the Watertown community in 1959. Her heart’s desire was to serve the poor and underprivileged Spanish and Mexican people, so S. Jane Frances volunteered as a missionary to Guatemala for two years. On her return, she continued her education and graduated with degrees leading to nursing registration. In June 1977 she transferred her stability back to Sacred Heart Monastery in Yankton and resumed serving the Hispanic people in Colorado, including religious education and pastoral care in parishes, nursing homes, and jails.

Of special memory was the summer of 1995 when she was privileged to spend a month in Rome for a Benedictine Monastic experience. She writes, “Life as a Yankton Benedictine has been a tremendous fulfillment in my ministries as a health provider, serving the poor, the incarcerated, and preparing young people for confirmation and Holy Eucharist. How can I begin to thank God for the graces afforded me to carry out His Holy will.”

 Sister Yvonne came to Yankton from Lefor, ND, where her parents made their home after moving to this country from Hungary. She says that she was surrounded by Benedictine Sisters and monks all her life. The second oldest of eleven children, S. Yvonne was engaged in domestic work thinking at 18 years of age she was past the age for acceptance to a convent. She was set right when she became more informed and so became a postulant on December 8, 1942.

During her years as a Benedictine Sister S. Yvonne was engaged primarily in the Ecclesiastical Vestment Department and domestic work at the Bishop’s House in Sioux Falls and at the chaplain’s residence at the Monastery. S. Yvonne’s work with the aged began when assigned to St. Thomas More in Canon City, CO. in 1972. She received her degree in Social Work from Mount Marty College and her ministry with the aged continued on several mission assignments. She especially enjoyed her five years at Albion, NE where she was engaged in parish visiting and assisted with religious education.

Of her 70 years in Benedictine living, Sr. Yvonne says, “What I treasure most is the Sisters learning to live together, seeing how they do so much for one another. Monastic life just grows on a person when you see what is being done.”

Tomorrow we will introduce their shining classmates...

Curious about more of our stories? Follow this link to our "Meet the Sisters" page. You can 'click' on different sisters names to find out more about their story, our vows, and living as a Benedictine Sister! Or follow the "Vocation" link at the top of our blog to request more information!

National Catholic Sisters Week ~ Another String of Diamonds

Greetings from our sisters celebrating 60 years of profession,

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

 Sister Anna was raised with her siblings on a farm near Freeman, SD. Anna entered Sacred Heart Monastery after high school and looking back she says: “It was a calling from a stable and strong Catholic family farm life with a variety of prayer and work, and Christian education at Mount Marty High School. The Sisters were a huge influence, especially Sr. Jane Klimisch. I loved the Liturgy and angel voices in harmony.” 

During her years as a Benedictine Sister, S. Anna taught elementary education in parochial schools in Yankton, Sioux Falls, and Salem, SD; York and Omaha, NE; and Pueblo, CO. She states the nineteen years of teaching experience with all eight elementary grades, as well as duties of principal were rewarding times in her life, as supported by the love and care of the Sisters she lived with on mission.

In 1969 Sr. Anna was invited to assist in the training of religious education teachers. She received her MA in theology at the Theological Union in Berkeley, CA in 1973 and then implemented the parish family religious education programs in the Sioux Falls diocese. S. Anna writes: “My Benedictine community life could be summarized in Sirach 39:33: ‘All the works of God are good. Every need is fulfilled in due time.’ For I have been privileged to seek God in teaching elementary and junior high and serve as Director of Religious Education and Parish Ministry.

I can now assist in retreat work and the sharing our home and history through tours of our monastery. I am grateful for my parents, family and teachers who have been my mentors in blessing the ‘work of my hands.’” (Ps 90:17)

 Sister Cynthia Binder, with two sisters and two brothers, grew up in Yankton where their parents, made their home. Since she lived a mere six blocks from Sacred Heart Convent and attended Mount Marty High School and College, S. Cynthia’s faith and education were nurtured by the Benedictine Sisters she came to know and love. 

She entered the convent after graduation in 1952. S. Cynthia began teaching at the elementary level at the newly built Christ the King school in Sioux Falls. This proved to be short term for she was next assigned to the pursuit of higher education majoring in English, French and Spanish. She holds an MA in French from the University of South Dakota, and an MA in English from Georgetown University. Her studies in New York University’s French program included a year spent in Paris. While at Georgetown she taught reading one year in the Washington, D.C. public school system and volunteered to help illiterate prisoners at the prison in Lorton, Virginia.

Returning to Mount Marty College teaching, she joined the education program at the Yankton Federal Prison Camp. S. Cynthia’s foreign language classes prompted her to organize and lead college student tours to Europe annually since 1969. The European tours engendered her interest in foreign films and the teaching and interpretation of foreign movies and the History of Film. Since 2012, S. Cynthia has been Program Director for the Center for Active Learners that offers senior citizens in the area a short-term seminar on various subjects.

About her Jubilee, S. Cynthia writes: “After 60 years, I realize I have been blessed with the Benedictine vision of life. So many good and rich experiences have come to me because of my community and our Benedictine values. Deo Gratias .”

 Sister Dorothy Olinger was the seventh child in a family of nine children near Emery, SD. During her 60 years as a Yankton Benedictine Sister, S. Dorothy taught at the elementary level for 35 years in parish schools located in Sioux Falls, Chamberlain, and Webster, SD; and in Albion and Lincoln, NE; and Pueblo, CO. She also ministered at Goodwill Home for Children in Memphis, TN. for three summers, and was parish visitor at Christ the King, Sioux Falls before she moved back to the monastery in 2005. 


Sr. Dorothy writes: “At one time I did become aware of a yearning for a contemplative life. However, after 60 years of living, I can still say I feel the Lord was calling me to this place because I now realize we lead lives that are both apostolic and contemplative. I entered Sacred Heart Monastery after making two retreats at Mount Marty which lead me to talk with my pastor, the late Monsignor Meyer. He encouraged me to contact his sister at Yankton. So I wrote to Sr. Beata, who directed me to contact Mother Jerome and the rest is history.”

S. Dorothy is a traveler, having visited Europe and many places of historical interest before entrance to the monastery. Travel did not end with her entrance to religious life in 1952. She cherishes the fun trips with her group as they went on a Jubilee trip to Europe in 1979 and later took more adventurous trips to Benedictine Motherhouses in the United States and visited places of interest throughout the country including Canada. S. Dorothy states: “Being a Benedictine is being at home to me as together we seek God in our everyday lives. This is a reason to celebrate God’s love among us.”

 Sister Victorine Stoltz is the youngest of eight children. She grew up on a farm, attended St. Martin’s School and the local public high school. Seeing a notice about the shortage of teachers, she attended Notre Dame Junior College, in Mitchell, SD, for a first grade teaching certificate. This she did in a small rural school and thus began her long teaching career. 

She entered Sacred Heart Convent in August, 1952 and after profession as a Benedictine Sister, she taught in the parish schools of Yankton, Sioux Falls, Salem, SD; Lincoln, St. James, and St. Paul, NE; and Pueblo, CO. For sixteen of those years she also served as Principal.S. Victorine’s love of history and social studies was nurtured by many of the ancient churches and monasteries she visited in her European travels.

Her hunger for knowledge of past events and cultures served S. Victorine well in her position as monastery archivist when she retired from teaching in 1991. A favorite pastime she enjoyed was to study her family’s genealogy and Luxembourgh heritage. S. Victorine was also known for her love of walking and during her time in Lincoln, NE, several friends invited her to join them at a Volkswalks Convention in DC. She next participated in walks in DC, Maryland, Pennyslvania, Virginia and West Virginia. Several walks were in areas that had been the battlefields of the Civil War.

S. Victorine currently resides in the Monastery Care Center. She enjoys music and singing along to familiar tunes. She says her life as a Benedictine has been both fulfilling and challenging. God be praised!

Tomorrow our 70 year Diamonds will take the stage...

Curious about more of our stories? Follow this link to our "Meet the Sisters" page. You can 'click' on different sisters names to find out more about their story, our vows, and living as a Benedictine Sister! Or follow the "Vocation" link at the top of our blog to request more information!

National Catholic Sisters Week ~ A String of Diamonds

Greetings from a string of Diamonds,

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

 Sister Patricia was the seventh of nine children born on the family farm near Freeman, SD. She began her education in a rural one-room school house and after graduating from Mount Marty High School in 1952 she entered Sacred Heart Convent. 

As a professed Sister, S. Patricia began teaching in parish schools in South Dakota and Nebraska. After twenty years of teaching and pursing higher education, she received her MA in Pastoral Ministry from St. Mary’s University in San Antonio, TX in the summer of 1976 and her MA in Elementary Administration from the University of Omaha in 1984. S. Patricia served as Pastoral Associate at St. Richard’s parish in Omaha for ten years and then became principal at St. Richard’s school. 


In 1992 she moved to Lincoln, NE where she taught at St. Patrick’s school, was principal at St. Mary’s and founding principal at North American Martyrs School which she helped to open in 1996. In her 59 years of teaching, she was principal for 39 years. In 1990 S. Patricia was named the outstanding Religious Educator in the Archdiocese of Omaha, and in 2012 she received the “Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice” award.

She retired from being principal in 2014 and moved back to the monastery. S. Patricia writes: “I love being a Benedictine Sister! The greatest gift God has given me in this life is my community. I love to share, I love to pray and I love to play and I love to laugh together! My Sisters bring me great joy! My 60 years have been a joy most of all because of what my Sisters have done for me.”

 Sister Rosemary grew up on a farm near Salem, SD. She feels it was her parents, their family life and St. Mary’s parish in Salem that influenced her vocation. She chose Sacred Heart Monastery because the Sisters ministered in a rural area which to her is familiar territory. She adds: “I suspect my great aunt, Sister Modesta, of beloved memory, had something to do with it because she prayed that some relative would take her place.”

Sister Rosemary’s 60 years of ministry has been in education; teaching in parish schools at Aberdeen, Dimock, Salem, SD and York, NE. She was principal at St. Lambert School in Sioux Falls, SD. Desiring to work more with adults, S. Rosemary moved into parish ministry, doing adult religious education, the RCIA, Bible studies as well as outreach to the home bound in Holy Name parish, Watertown, SD and St. Benedict parish, Yankton, SD. Always a bit inclined to the missionary field, she worked as pastoral minister at Standing Rock Reservation for 14 years.

A special memory S. Rosemary cherishes was in 1998 when she was privileged to visit Kajiato, Kenya at a mission that had been supported by her family. Four years later she returned to Africa to teach English to African Sisters in Mtwara, Tanzania.

Looking back, S. Rosemary comments: “Living the Benedictine Life has been most fulfilling. Upon entering Sacred Heart Monastery, I felt right at home. Living the community life and sharing the prayer of the Divine Office gives great peace. It is with a very grateful heart that I look back on my years as a Benedictine Sister of Sacred Heart Monastery.”

 Sister Valerie is the youngest of four in her family and was born and raised in Watertown, SD. After graduating from Mount Marty High School, S. Valerie decided to enter Sacred Heart Convent because of the liturgy and the witness of the Sisters.

Her religious and professional life involved teaching in the parish schools in Yankton, Tabor, Sioux Falls, Chamberlain and Watertown, SD; Glen Ullen, ND, and in Lincoln and Hartington, NE. In 1966, after preparations at a Spanish language school in Mexico City, S. Valerie was one of five Sisters sent on mission to San Pedro Carcha, Guatemala, where she taught for five years. Returning to the states, she studied for her MAT in teaching Spanish at Purdue University in Lafayette, La.; MA in Administration/Education at the University of Nebraska and an MA in Religious Education at the University of St. Thomas in Houston, TX.

In 1999 S. Valerie moved to Watertown for six years. She did substitute teaching the first year and then taught in the Catholic school full time and for two years taught classes at the Mount Marty College satellite campus. In 2005, S. Valerie moved to Parkston where she did pastoral care at St. Benedict’s Hospital before retiring to the monastery in 2013. She now assists with chaplaincy duties in the Care Center and is involved in ministry with the Mexican/Spanish speaking people in the Yankton area.

About her Jubilee S. Valerie says: “By the grace of God I was blessed to teach every grade from three year olds to college students. They were all my favorites! The life of living in a Benedictine community is rich and rewarding.”


Tomorrow classmates to these diamonds will share their stories...

Curious about more of our stories? Follow this link to our "Meet the Sisters" page. You can 'click' on different sisters names to find out more about their story, our vows, and living as a Benedictine Sister! Or follow the "Vocation" link at the top of our blog to request more information!

National Catholic Sisters Week ~ Golden Jubilarians

Greetings,

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

Sister Jeanne  grew up on a farm near Tyndall, SD, second in a family of  four children.  After graduating from Tyndall High School,  S. Jeanne attended Mount Marty College. graduating in 1962 with a BA in Social Science.  She says attending Mount Marty opened for her worlds academically and spiritually. That fall she entered Sacred Heart Convent.  

After first profession, S. Jeanne taught at Mount Marty High School until its closure in 1969.   This was followed by graduate studies at the University of Notre Dame where she earned a Masters and Doctor of Philosophy degrees.  S. Jeanne’s ministries have included teaching at the college and graduate levels, counseling, serving as consultant and facilitator for numerous religious communities and leadership roles in the American Benedictine Academy, Association of Benedictine Retreat Centers and Monastic Interreligious Dialogue.  

Since 1990, S. Jeanne has been engaged in full-time retreat ministry and continues to serve as Director of the ecumenical Spiritual Direction Ministry Formation Program.  In 2000, S. Jeanne earned a Doctor of Ministry degree in Spiritual Direction through the Graduate Theological Foundation including a summer attending Oxford University in England.  S. Jeanne continues as Director of the Benedictine Peace Center established in 2001 with the completion of a new wing of the monastery.  

S. Jeanne writes:  “Fifty years have passed quickly, filled with experiences and opportunities I hadn’t dreamed would be mine.  Whatever the years before me hold, my hope is that I will be ever more attentive and responsive to the profound and amazing gift of God’s loving Presence among us.  I am deeply grateful to my family, my sisters and all those whom I have been privileged to serve in a variety of ministries.  With a long way to go yet, my hope is to attain what St. Benedict promises to a disciple after  long years of fidelity in our monastic way of life, that is:  “to run with heart enlarged on the way of God’s commandments.”

Sister Mildred Busch was born in Luverne, MN.  She joined three brothers and three sisters growing up on a farm northwest of Luverne.  St. Rose of Lima parish in Garretson, SD was an anchor in her family’s faith life as her father became the first layman to lector and serve as communion minister in their church following the reforms of Vatican II.  

S. Mildred graduated from Garretson High School in 1961.  She attended Mount Marty College for one year before she entered Sacred Heart Convent in 1962.  In 1967 she received her BA in history from Mount Marty and MA in education from the University of Nebraska in 1981.  For 33 years S. Mildred taught in elementary and high school levels in parish schools of Tabor and Yankton, SD; and Cedar Catholic High, Hartington and Cathedral of Risen Christ, Lincoln, NE.   She was principal for 20 of those years and she states her years in education have brought great joy and satisfaction for the privilege of being involved in the lives of hundreds of children and young people.    

Throughout her years in religious life, S. Mildred was involved in community administrative areas, serving terms on the Council and numerous committee and task forces.   In 1999 she entered a new phase of ministry by serving on the task force for co-sponsorship of our Benedictine health system with the Aberdeen Presentation Sisters health system now known as Avera.   She continued to serve the health system as a member of several Avera  Hospitals Board of Directors and has been a System Member Chair for Avera Health.   In 2005 S. Mildred was appointed Community Procurator.  She loved these years of serving the community very directly, adding that “the learning curve was huge, but the challenge was enjoyable.”   

Currently S. Mildred is Pastoral Administrative Assistant at St. Michael’s Parish in Lincoln, NE.  Her newest venture has been writing and sharing Guided Visualizations on Gospel passages, stories and events.   In closing S. Mildred  says,  “On my Jubilee, I celebrate with everlasting gratitude my call to the Monastery and thank God for His faithfulness.”

Blessings and return tomorrow for a string of Diamonds...

Curious about more of our stories? Follow this link to our "Meet the Sisters" page. You can 'click' on different sisters names to find out more about their story, our vows, and living as a Benedictine Sister! Or follow the "Vocation" link at the top of our blog to request more information! 

An Invitation to our Open House!

Greetings,

Let all guests who arrive be received like Christ, 
for He is going to say, 
"I came as a guest, and you received Me" (Matt. 25:35).
And to all let due honor be shown,
especially to the domestics of the faith and to pilgrims.
(Rule of Benedict 53: 1-2)

Saint Benedict would rejoice in Pope Francis' call for women and men in religious orders to throw open their doors for an open house. Following the spirit of Benedict we invite you to join us for an afternoon of fellowship and prayer in our monastic home.

Our open house celebrating our Benedictine life will be held on Sunday, March 15th beginning at 2 PM with...

• Tours of our monastic chapel and dinning room
• Tours of the historic Marty house, home of Bishop Martin Marty
• Reception with the sisters in our chapter room: monastery-made cookies, visiting, and a power point telling our story in pictures

Our open house will close at 4 PM with Vespers (evening prayer) in Bishop Marty Memorial Chapel.

Pope Francis' Apostolic Letter "To All Consecrated People" encourages this sharing of our call to life within the Church: past, present, and future.

We invite you to our open house "to look to the past with gratitude"!

"Recounting our history is essential for preserving our identity, for strengthening our unity as a family and our common sense of belonging...it calls for following in the footsteps of past generations in order to grasp the high ideals, and the vision and values which inspired them, beginning with the founders and foundresses and the first communities." 

We invite you to our open house "to live the present with passion"!

"So, be men and women of communion! Have the courage to be present in the midst of conflict and tension, as a credible sign of the presence of the Spirit who inspires in human hearts a passion for all to be one."

We invite you to our open house "to embrace the future with hope"!
"This hope is not based on statistics or accomplishments, but on the One in whom we have put our trust, the One for whom "nothing is impossible". This is the hope which does not disappoint; it is the hope which enables consecrated life to keep writing its great history well into the future. It is to that future that we must always look, conscious that the Holy Spirit spurs us on so that he can still do great things with us."