1 10 108 https://scfederationarchives.org/files/original/31a11d352fbeec210a50abaeb1ee6380.jpg 849ef616b4a46cb7f72fd8d2cd1bfc02 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Statue of Madonna and Child Jesus Subject The topic of the resource Catholic Sisters Religious women Statue Madonna and Child Jesus Sisters of Charity of Saint Elizabeth Convent Station, NJ Newark, NJ Madison, NJ Sisters of Charity of New York Description An account of the resource This statue of the Madonna and Child Jesus was given to Sister Mary Xavier Mehegan, a Sister of Charity of New York, circa 1859. The statue was given to her by the Sisters of Charity of New York when Sister Mary Xavier agreed to help found the Sisters of Charity of Saint Elizabeth in New Jersey. Now Mother Mary Xavier, she kept the statue in the first Motherhouse in Newark, New Jersey and carried it in her arms on the carriage ride to rural Morris County on July 2, 1860 when the Motherhouse was relocated to Madison, New Jersey. It is on display in the Heritage Room of the Motherhouse. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Unknown Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available N/A Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource ca. 1859 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource N/A Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Permission for reproduction or quotation must be obtained through written application to: Director of Archives, Sisters of Charity of Saint Elizabeth, P.O. Box 476, Convent Station, New Jersey. This permission is valid only insofar as he Archives of the Sisters of Charity of Saint Elizabeth, as owner or custodian, has any rights in the matter and does not remove the responsibility of the author, editor, and publisher to guard against the infringement of any rights; including copyright, that may be held by others. Relation A related resource N/A Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Statue, plaster Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Physical object Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context N/A Sisters of Charity of Saint Elizabeth https://scfederationarchives.org/files/original/c76c6f420b04bb3275f6018c10d0ef18.jpg c251ab3bf9102cad76f2e82891c236e8 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Administrative Centre, Congregation of the Sisters of St. Martha, Antigonish, Subject The topic of the resource Administration building Congregation of the Sisters of St. Martha, Antigonish Description An account of the resource Administrative Centre, Congregation of the Sisters of St. Martha, Antigonish Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Congregation of the Sisters of St. Martha, Antigonish Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Congregation of the Sisters of St. Martha, Antigonish Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Congregation of the Sisters of St. Martha, Antigonish Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2022 Relation A related resource N/A Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource .jpeg Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Still Image Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context N/A Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Antigonish (Nova Scotia, Canada) https://scfederationarchives.org/files/original/9ca353720ebeb78068a834f7104ca1a0.jpg 34d1253e5dc88b3bdb5d188a1a13cccc https://scfederationarchives.org/files/original/a876822c2c63d8007b23a6dd08903225.pdf b9202377ff53898f62a158ea7e14a0e3 PDF Text Text Sister Ann George, SCN: A Profile …He (God) Comes, Comes, Ever Comes Have you not heard His (God’s) silent steps? He (God) comes, comes, ever comes. Every moment and every age, every day and every night he comes, comes, ever comes. Many a song have I sung in many a mood of mind, but all their notes have always proclaimed, “He comes, comes, ever comes.” … and it is the golden touch of God’s feet that makes my joy to shine. (​Ravindranath Tagore, Poem 45​) As I was getting ready to jot down the story of my life, the above poem flashed through my mind. This poem means much to me. As my story unfolds, you (the readers of my story), will recognize the “songs” I have sung, “in many a mood of mind” and how they have been the instruments of my enlightened human experiences; hence, truly my God-experiences. Now I would like to invite you to accompany me into my early childhood. Coconut and areca nut palms, banana plants and coffee bushes, mango, cashew and jackfruit trees, pineapple and tapioca plants, wild bushes and vines with red, yellow, purple and white blossoms in season, adorn a plot of land by the side of a running brook at Mallikassery in Kottayam district, Kerala, India. In the middle of this land stands a medium sized house with wide verandas on three sides of it. This is my home from the time I, Annamma Mukalel, was a year old. Earlier my family lived at another location in the same village on a small hillock overlooking the same brook and a vast expanse of paddy field with a narrow canal flowing through the middle of it. This canal known as ponnozhukan ​thodu (​ponnu = gold, ​ozhakan = flowing, ​thodu = canal) meets the brook at the northern tip of our land and eventually merges with the Meenachil River. Legend has it that this canal got its name ‘​ponnozhukan thodu’ because a large brass vessel full of gold flowed through it many, many years ago! A section of the bank of this canal close to our land has been the meeting place of several of our neighbours, especially children. They frequented the canal for bathing, swimming, washing clothes, catching fish, etc. During the summer months, the best friend of most of the children of our village also bathed in this canal every Sunday. Guess who? A huge tame elephant! There was always a good crowd to see him. The finale of his bath was worth watching. After getting his large body scrubbed by the mahout and his assistants, the elephant would stand up and breathe in a lot of water into his trunk and sprinkle it all over his body. Then, he would walk out of the canal majestically with shining skin, sparkling eyes, and partially open mouth as if to smile at all his admirers! 1 �Having situated myself at home and described my surroundings, let me introduce my family. I, Annamma, am the youngest of the seven children of Mr. Varkey and Mrs. Aleykutty Varkey Mukalel. According to seniority, we are Devasia (deceased), Mathew (deceased), Aleykutty, Sebastian (Pappachan), Mariakutty, Kunjannamma (deceased). I am fondly called Koche (baby) by my elders and siblings. My parents were grief-stricken at the loss of their three children at the tender ages of two months, seven years, and two years respectively. I did not have the privilege of being with any of them as all of them had gone to heaven before my birth. Born on January 16, 1940, I was baptised at St. Xavier’s Church, Vilakkumadom in the diocese of Chenganassery on January 20, 1940. In 1949, the Chenganassery diocese was divided, and we came under the Palai diocese. Our parish was divided in 1953, and St. Thomas Church Mallikassery became our new parish. The political situation in the world was very tense during my early childhood. Because I was born during World War II, I was given the name ‘war baby’. Since I was the youngest in the family and my older siblings were at school, I was often with my parents as they worked on our family farm for several hours every day. While they were at work, I played with the calves and kids in the field; also, went on nature rambles. During some of these nature walks, I enjoyed breaking off pineapples from our pineapple plants and eating them with my parents. Playing teacher to the coconut trees and coffee bushes around my home was a past-time for me. Wearing a lungi (a long piece of cloth) as sari, I wrote some numbers on the wooden wall of our house with charcoal and with a stick in hand, I taught the trees arithmetic. Of course, writing on the wall with charcoal didn’t go very well with my parents. Eventually, I had to scrub it off the wall and resort to teaching the trees only mental arithmetic. My parents were devout Catholics. They woke up early in the morning and prayed for a long time every day. We, children, had a shorter morning prayer. All of us prayed the evening prayer together. By the time I started school, my sister, Aleykutty, and brother, Sebastian, whom I called Appachan affectionately, had already completed their middle school education. In June 1946, I was enrolled as Annamma M.V. (Mukalel Varkey) at St. Teresa’s Middle School, Vilakkumadom, run by the Third Order of Carmelites (Discalced). My sister, Mariakutty, was already in the same school in Class II. I caught up with her in Class III because she was a slow learner. I received First Holy Communion at the age of seven. It was a memorable day. After Mass, the forty communicants had breakfast together, another joy for us. My brother, Pappachan, and my elder sister, Aleykutty, were settled in life by December 1948. My paternal grandfather was part of our family. In 1950, my youngest uncle took him to his home for a 2 �few months. While there, our grandfather fell ill suddenly and expired in a few days. My parents had a Gregorian Mass (Mass offered for a deceased person for thirty consecutive days) offered for him. I was privileged to participate in it daily. We missed our grandfather so much. Things went on smoothly for us until late 1951. During the Onam (harvest festival of Kerala) holidays, my sister, Mariakutty suffered from a fever. She was treated in the best hospital close to our home. Though the medical team did all they could to revive her, she could not be saved. We were told that she died of a brain tumour. Within a few hours her body was brought home. The school community, Sisters, teachers and students streamed to our house from early morning until late afternoon to bid goodbye to my beloved sister. It was a grand tribute to her. The funeral took place only at 5.00 pm. It took us a very long time to get over the loss of my sister. The next three years of school at St. Teresa’s were very memorable and pleasant. We were active in the Sodality and the Mission League. Helping the poor and raising funds for the missions were some of our favourite activities. We shared our lunch with children who did not bring anything to eat at tiffin time. On our way to school, I would give alms to a leprosy patient who lived in a very small hut. The Carmelite Sisters were real role models for us. Participating in the thirteen-hour adoration in the Carmelite chapel was a heavenly experience. Every year, I made the retreat for the students. We kept total silence during the retreat and prayed many rosaries and ejaculations during our free time. There was a spiritual atmosphere at home, too. During my time in the middle school, especially in Class VIII, I felt the promptings of the Spirit to become a religious. Love for the holy was nurtured in me by my family, especially by my mother, the Sisters in my school, the parish priest, friends, etc. From Class I onwards, we had catechism classes in the school on week days and on Sundays after the second Mass. One of the prizes I received in the diocesan level catechism exam was a biography of St. Teresa of Avila. This book had a great influence on me. My mother was very much devoted to St. Theresa of Lisieux (The Little Flower). The school Sisters also perpetuated the devotion to both Teresa of Avila and the Little Flower. In June 1954, I began my high school studies at St. Joseph High School, Vilakkumadom, a co-ed school with only male teachers at that time. By now, life was more interesting at home with the addition of three lively nephews. My high school headmaster was a priest. The students were well behaved and good at studies. Though there were no religious on the staff, we had catechism classes after school hours. The teachers were exemplary and helped us to imbibe sound values. We enjoyed annual cultural competitions and the Labour Week. During the Labour Week, all had to do some kind of manual work. The teachers worked along with the students. In the afternoons we had cultural programs. On one of those days, we held a “Parliament session” with the students and teachers. All enjoyed and learnt much from this activity. The three years of high school flew by, and it was time for the matriculation examination in March 1957. All students of our school passed this examination with good marks. I was privileged to be among the three students of our school who passed in First Division. Securing a First Division was a rare honour in those days. Among the 3 �twenty-one girls in our class, fourteen were Catholics and all except two joined various religious Congregations. After the publication of the matric results, one day when I went for my regular confession, the priest asked me what I was going to do next. I told him of my desire to become a religious and of my family’s financial difficulties to send me to a convent during that year, but that they would let me join any convent in the following year. The priest sent for my brother that very day. When they met, the priest told my brother that it would be better for me to join a convent that year and that he would find a way to help him out. When my brother relayed this to my parents, they also agreed to let me go to a mission the same year. Looking back, I believe that it was a direct intervention of God in my life. God called me to religious life in “God’s own time” and saw that it was done! It was June 1957. My decision to go to the missions was inspired by Sister Mary Joseph Pamplaniel, SCN who had joined the SCNs in the previous year. She was my parishioner and a member of my school. Trusting in God, I wrote a letter to Sister Lawrencetta Veeneman, requesting her to let me join the SCNs in June 1957. She responded to my request positively. I left for Mokama on July 3, 1957, the feast of St. Thomas, along with a group of nursing students of Nazareth Hospital who were on their home visit. The final goodbye to my people at the railway station was very painful but the determination to follow Jesus was stronger! The journey to Mokama was comfortable. On my arrival at Nazareth Hospital, Mokama on July 7, 1957, Sister Florence Joseph (Mary Frances Sauer) and Sister Lawrencetta extended me a warm welcome. I was accommodated with the staff nurses from Kerala for a few days. Sister Crescentia Wise took me to Nazareth Academy, Gaya, on July 12, 1957, to join the senior candidates, Annamma Joseph and Lilly Rita Thundiyil. There were six American Sisters, among them, two of the SCN pioneers – Sister Charles Miriam Holt and Sister Ann Roberta Powers. A full time teacher at Nazareth Academy, Gaya, Sister Patricia Mary Kelley was our director. She kept us well occupied in the school. Annamma Joseph (from now on Anne Marie Thayilchirayil) and Lilly Rita Thundiyil (from now on Teresa Martin) were my companions. They were in Gaya six months ahead of me. Since two of us had the name Annamma, to avoid confusion, I was called Anna Mary until I got my religious name Sister Ann George Mukalel on the day of our vestition. We, candidates, attended the science classes, taught by Sister James Leo Goldsborough along with the students of Class X. After school hours, Sister Patricia taught us classes in English, community history, and general instruction. We read several supplementary English books to improve our comprehension and vocabulary. We had piano lessons once a week, and practiced cycling, too. On January 6, 1958, we, Anne Marie, Lilly Thundiyil, Aleykutty Kuriakose, Rose Augustine and I entered postulancy at Mokama. Sister Lawrencetta was the director of postulants and novices. Our days were well-balanced with prayer, classes, manual work, recreation and games. On weekdays, we ate lunch after the reading from the Martyrology for the day, then had recreation. This reading quite often ended up in “peels of laughter”. The routine in the novitiate was almost 4 �the same as that of the postulancy except for the study of SCN Constitutions and the Book of Customs. On Sundays we also taught catechism to the women parishioners of Mokama. Once a month, we visited Catholic families in the villages. This was a small way of connecting with the parishioners. On some moon-lit nights, after supper, Sister Lawrencetta took us for a walk to the shrine to watch the different constellations of stars, and, a few times, to fish in the shrine pond with fishing rods and hooks. They were real treats for us! Sister Lawrencetta was loving, understanding and genuinely interested in those under her care. We loved her. After making an eight-day retreat, we made our first vows on the feast of St. Thomas on December 21, 1960. My first mission was to Nazareth Academy, Gaya, and my companion was Sister Ignatius Marie (Annemarie) Thayilchirayil. After a year of teaching at the Academy, we were sent to Patna Women’s College, Patna for the one-year pre-university studies. In August 1962, I, along with Ignatius Marie, was sent to the Motherhouse, Nazareth, to continue our college studies at Nazareth College, KY. Along with our college studies, we also followed the juniorate program for the temporary professed Sisters at Nazareth under the guidance of Sister Mary Rosine Callahan. She was a saintly person who went out of her way to provide us every opportunity to grow in holiness. There were eighty of us in the juniorate as we first started the program. On every first Sunday we were taken to Bellarmine College, Louisville, to attend the Biblical Institutes conducted by Father Carrol Steumuller and team. Our pre-university marks were recognized by Nazareth College. So, we completed the four-year college studies in three years. In preparation for final vows we had to make an eight-day retreat. On the feast of St. Thomas, December 21, 1965, we made our final vows in the presence of over 200 SCNs. We also had the rare privilege of eating breakfast with Mother Ann Sebastian, Mother Bertrand, Mother Lucille and the General Councillors at a specially decorated table in the middle of the Motherhouse refectory. During the first year of my graduate studies, I stayed with the college community of Sisters while attending classes at Catherine Spalding College in Louisville. I had the privilege to be with the Presentation Community during the second year. I received the Master’s Degree in Education from Catherine Spalding College in May 1967. On our way back to India, we had the privilege of visiting Rome. After a short visit home, I was assigned to Mokama to take care of the candidates. There were ten candidates in the group and I enjoyed being with them. I was appointed teacher at Nazareth Academy, Gaya in June 1968. During this assignment I taught from Classes IV to VIII in the English medium section. I began teaching as a class teacher of Class IV. The class four had such a disparity in learning ability. I asked Sister James Leo Goldsborough, the principal, to divide the class into two groups according to their scholastic ability. I took the weaker section of the students. Except for Hindi and Sanskrit, I taught them all subjects giving them various types of learning experiences. They were taught creatively, and by the end of the year, both classes performed well. This is one of my success stories as a teacher. ​In June 1970, I was happy to have Sister 5 �Anne Marie Thayilchirayil, my candidate companion, as my principal (the first Indian principal of Nazareth Academy, Gaya.) One time, I gave a project to the students of Class VI to recognize the non-teaching staff of the school. The students decided to honour them with a program and lunch. It was a great success; all appreciated it, and, for years, it continued as Worker’s Day. I also encouraged my students to help the children of the fourth class employees. We started with a boy with dwarfism and slowly had close to ten children. Later, they were incorporated into the non-formal classes conducted by Sister Sunita Vayalipara, SCN. The non-formal school has been well set up since then. I also initiated a project with the students to articulate who God was to them and the attributes they gave to God. After consulting their parents, the elders at home, and, their spiritual gurus, they enumerated the values which they hold. After a group discussion, they made the decision to hold those values which the whole class held in common. We made a creed expressing what we believe as a whole – Hindus, Muslims, Christians and Sikhs. We framed it, hung it in our class, then carried it forward to the next class as I was also promoted to the next class with the same group of children. It took us almost six months to complete the project. For social and cultural awareness, they also studied the important local places such as the post office, railway station, important temples, etc. Students wrote something on each place of importance they found and made a file with the information. They also gathered autographed photographs of important national leaders. For group work, students were encouraged to write scripts for plays which they acted out. For stories, I used to give students two or three characters and they were encouraged to write a story on those characters. I was privileged to accompany this same group of students up to Class IX, and, that year, I got another ministry assignment. On one occasion, an Anglo Indian boy named Peter brought two pupae of butterflies, each of which he placed in a glass jar with tops with tiny holes and kept them on the open book shelf. After a few days, while the class was in session, Peter’s attention was on one of the pupae which was coming out of the jar. Suddenly, a beautiful butterfly came out. Peter opened the lid of the bottle and the butterfly flew around in the classroom. We closed the doors and windows and watched the newly born butterfly; within seconds we noticed a butterfly emerge in the second jar! It was still in the bottle. The children’s joy knew no bounds. All were clapping hands, talking, laughing and shouting. After ten to fifteen minutes we freed those beautiful butterflies into the open space. I put the students into groups of five where they could choose some way of expressing what they saw in poems, stories, paragraphs, little skits, etc. They showed their creations to the neighbouring class! From June 1975 to June 1978, I served as the Education Director of the India province. I visited ​all the SCN-owned and administered schools to give in-service training for the teachers who needed it. During this time there was an undertaking from the Congregation to evaluate the SCN-owned schools and to spell out our philosophy of education. It took a long time. Sister Dorothy MacDougall, SCN, was part of this process. With her help, we were able to draw up our philosophy of education. In 1978, I had a one-month renewal in Topchanji near Gomoh with a group of SCNs. 6 �I was appointed principal of Nazareth Academy, Gaya, in June 1978. Getting Nazareth Academy recognized by the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) was our priority at that time. The first requirement for this recognition was to obtain the “No Objection Certificate” (OBC) from the State Education Board. We had to cross many hurdles to get this done. Once the OBC was obtained, the rest of the recognition procedures were speeded up. And finally, thank goodness, the school got the recognition from CBSE, Delhi in May 1981. I tried to keep up the excellence of the school by having various activities for both the students and teachers. One year for parent’s day, students wrote original poems and recited them in front of their parents. Since it was parents’ day, the presentation was well-received. A team of our high school students won the science trophy in the inter-state science competitions held in Calcutta. Both the staff and students exhibited a high degree of cooperation, family spirit and patriotism. In January 1985, I was appointed to Nazareth Convent, Ranchi. Keeping Nazareth Convent as my base, I helped out in the ministry places where there was a need for my presence. I taught in St. Xavier’s School, Mokama, for a few months. Then, I taught at St. Michael’s School, Sale, Mahuadanr as substitute for Sister Suma Muthukattuparampil. Though many of the students were poor, they were good at studies. I enjoyed teaching them. The teachers were very cooperative. We lived in Kutuderi in a mud house. We had lots of fun in the community. Once a week, the Sisters cycled nine kilometres to Mahuadanr to purchase vegetables. We lived happily with the very minimum. In fact, if we had a ​kadhu ​(a kind of gourd) for a meal, it had the status of a feast day! I was very happy to live in the village among the local people. There was a lot of “give and take” among them. They did not hesitate to ask the neighbour to get something they actually needed. We participated whole-heartedly in the parish activities. I was very inspired by the sharing of the village catechists during their biweekly get together. Towards the end of 1985, I stayed in Mandair for a month and took part in the activities of the Sisters. Sister Philomena Kottoor used to go to very distant villages on bicycle to take care of the sick people; she also taught good health habits. Sisters Pauline Paraplackal and Hilda Lobo taught the children at the parish school. One day Sister Philomena fell from the bicycle and got a deep cut in her chin. She stitched that wound courageously by looking in a mirror. What will-power! What sacrifices the Sisters make to live in such remote areas for the sake of the poor. I used to visit the nearby villages with the Sisters. I still remember the picnic we had for the farewell that the Sisters gave their parish priest. The venue was the banks of a nearby stream close to the forest. Some young boys of our neighbourhood carried our supplies and a home-grown cock for lunch. On our way to the stream, the priest bought four birds from a group of boys who had gone hunting. Though the legs of the cock were tied with a string, the cock untied it by pecking on it while we were eating our breakfast. When we looked at the cock, we saw him walking freely and finally flying over to the other side of the stream. The priest and the boys crossed the slippery rocky stream to search for the him. After an hour they returned empty handed. The cock had gone into the thick jungle. We prepared the four birds for lunch. The funny thing was that some people close to the jungle told the boys that they could hear the crowing of the cock from a distance. For a 7 �week, the village boys looked for that cock. After a week nobody heard his crowing. It was probably eaten by a wild animal. A week later when the Sisters from Gaya entered the village for a picnic, they sang very loudly a Hindi song, ‘​Gaonwallo, apne murgi samplao’ (villagers, protect your chickens) which was very appropriate at the time. In the village, people enjoyed things in common. For example, as they walked by the peanut or corn field they would pick a head of corn or pull out a peanut plant to eat; no one minded that. Early in the morning, before the boys took the cattle for grazing they made fire in a small pot for light and warmth during winter. They carried it around and we could see these small lights coming from different directions and hear the sound of the bells tied around the neck of the cattle. From January 1986, I taught the college-going candidates in Ranchi for three years. In the same year, I spent two weeks at home with my father who was seriously ill. Since I was missing the classes for the candidates, I felt obliged to go back to Ranchi as soon as possible. So I told my father that I was thinking of going back to Ranchi soon. Then he told me, “Don’t go.” He was bed-ridden for four years. I was in a dilemma as to what to do. I left my father saying that I would return soon. I really thought in case he gets worse; surely there would be time for me to see him once more. Within two weeks, on September 1, 1986, I got word that he was no more. There was no way that I could reach home before the funeral. I, “my father’s sweet baby”, could not be with him in his last moments. Still, I have the satisfaction of having been with him for two weeks, attending to him and being with my mother, in those days of suffering. In 1988, I attended a three-month renewal program at Sadhana Institute in Lonavala, Pune. With thoughts of changing from teaching to social service, I discerned and volunteered to be in Ararghat in January 1989. Sisters Bridget Vadakeattam and Sunita Vayalipara were engaged in health, non-formal education and other social services. Before I reached there, a cow shed belonging to Mohan Murmu had been made into a liveable room. In one corner of the room, a little space was partitioned with a bamboo and straw screen for one person to stand and cook. At the other end of the room, we made a bamboo shelf to keep our rolled bedding. During the day, a chowki, the wooden bed was used by us and the people to sit. We had a wooden stool for three of us to sit on. There was a small medicine cabinet near the door to keep the emergency medicines. To fully open our tiny door we had to move the things around. Though we had very limited material things to live in, we were happy that we were one with the people in the locality. In fact, some of the people in the village had better houses than we had. There, I joined with Sister Sunita in the non-formal education of children. The villagers built a very small shed for the children to gather for classes. Some of the children were enrolled in the local school, but most were not. They all came in the morning for an hour of class. In the afternoon, the boys grazed their animals in the nearby fields sitting on their buffalos. The girls cut grass to feed the animals. We could hear them singing the nursery rhymes we had taught them. Sister Sunita conducted the government sponsored cutting and tailoring training for women and young girls in another house close by. While the mothers attended the class, I took their small 8 �children for literacy classes. We spent a lot of time in government offices for this kind of projects. We travelled by all modes of transportation such as trucks, tractors, ​tum-tum (horse cart) and, sometimes, by the very crowded buses. Our most often-travelled bus was ​Hawa-​ ​hawai​, (fast running) bus with the speed of 30 kilometres per hour. It had a few seats in the front and one long seat at the back with nothing to hold on to. By the time we could board, the bus would be almost full, and we sat on the back seat. With every brake, our head hit the ceiling. I remember falling into a mud-pot of curd. People took their animals also in the same bus. Once I saw a goat eat up a small mango plant from a man who was taking it to plant in his field. The nearest Mass station was seventy kilometres away in Saharsa at The Indian Missionary Society (IMS). Only once a month did we go for Mass since travel every week was tedious and expensive. The IMS priests were so extremely hospitable to us in that they gave us one of the two rooms they had. Their house was a second home to us during our travels. They helped us in every way possible. A year later, Sister Bridget moved out of Ararghat. The IMS priests introduced us to the district development officer of Saharsa. Though we worked in another district, we volunteered to take up the government poultry project for twenty-eight families in Saharsa district in March 1990. We organized the women to undertake the project since most of the men were alcoholics. I was the contact person between the government and the women, and Sunita continued with the programs in Ararghat. Twice a week she visited me and stayed with me for a day or two. We hired a supervisor to help the women get all the materials for making the poultry house as per the government requirement. Before dispatching the first batch of fifty chicks and feed, the women were given training to take care of the chicks. On the very first day itself, one or two families lost more than half of their chicks. Though the women had the training, they were not used to taking care of the white leghorns. A veterinary doctor ​administered some antibiotics, and the situation was under control. I moved from house to house to supervise that the right amount of feed, water and warmth was available to the chicks. The women kept questioning, “What kind of chicks are these?” They also could not understand why the chicken house had to be kept clean. The women had to clean their hands and feet before they entered the chicken house; all the feeding containers also had to be clean. Within one and a half-months, the chicks were ready for sale. There wasn’t much demand for this kind of meat. There was a middle man who really cheated them. Though I confronted him twice, he got wind of my coming and escaped. If the chickens were not sold at the right time, nobody would buy an overgrown chicken. Each family made a profit above Indian rupees 2000/- which was deposited in the women’s bank accounts. When we went there for the first time, most of the people had only one meal a day. By the time we left the place, the women could afford two decent meals a day. After the project work, we returned to Ararghat. During our free time, we visited families in our village and in nearby villages. In December 1992, I went to Nazareth, KY as a delegate for the General Assembly. There, I developed severe spondylitis and was asked to have a surgery just before I was to leave for India in January 1993. I returned to India and was under the treatment of Doctor Mukhopadhyay in Patna. 9 �Meanwhile, I got word that my only brother was seriously ill and in the intensive care unit (ICU). Hope for his recovery was minimal, and he was shifted from the ICU to the ward. Four of his charismatic friends, along with others, prayed over him. He showed signs of recovery and was shifted to the ICU where he recovered fast. When my family thanked the people who prayed for my brother, they said that one of your other family members with spondylitis is also healed. And I am that person who felt the healing touch of God through prayer. Thanks be to God! For a few days, I went back to Ararghat in February 1993, to get my things. I went to Narayan Chowk, Dharan in Nepal, to teach in the school for a year. The school was up to class three. Having a few students in a class, the atmosphere was homey and I could experiment many things with them. On parents’ day, the students received their parents, served them refreshments, and made them feel comfortable. The program was like a television broadcast. A big television was made out of a cardboard box, and all items were related to the subjects they had in the classroom. One of the drills was in geometrical shapes, right angles, squares, etc. The students dressed up as two or three famous mathematicians and interviewed them. They had the song on the solar system in the tune, “Here we go round the mulberry bush” and sang “Here we go round the glowing sun”. Parents enjoyed the program so much that it was a special parents’ day. Most of the fathers of the children worked in Hong Kong, and mothers took care of the children. I learned some Nepali to communicate with the people. In December 1993, I was elected assistant provincial of the India Province. I came to Patna in May from Dharan. June 1, 1994 was the day of installation for the new leadership team of the province. The newly elected province leadership members had a few days of team-building sessions in September. In the midst of this session, I got word that my mother expired on September 2, 1994. I did not go home for the funeral. I assisted Sister Bridget Kappalumakal as her assistant to the best of my ability. During this time, the province closed down two missions, Hilsa and Biharsharif in Bihar, and bought land in Almora. We also opened a new house in Kakkavayal in Kerala. After being in Provincial leadership, I had a six-week scripture course along with SCNs Bridget Kappalumakal and Sister Mary Joseph at the Charismatic Retreat Centre in Potta, Kerala. After a home visit, I went to Ranchi to teach in the formation program and to be in-charge of the student candidates in June 1999 for two years. In June 2001, I volunteered to go to Surkhet to be with Rosita Kavilpurayidathil, SCN. I joined her in social service programs such as self-help groups for women, cutting and tailoring for a year. In 2002, I was advised to have an angiogram done in Delhi by our doctors in Mokama. Before I left Mokama, Sister Xavier Valiakunnackal (now deceased) prayed over me. When the consultant doctor at Stephens’ Hospital, Delhi examined me, he said that I did not need an angiogram. He put me on medication and wanted to observe me for the following two months. During this waiting period, I visited Almora mission. I was fortunate to visit some of the villages in Almora and enjoyed the cool weather of the hills. 10 �I left Delhi in August 2002, and went back to Surkhet for a month. In April 2003, I was appointed teacher at Gyan Deep Vidyalaya in Birsanagar, Jamshedpur. I taught various subjects such as English and Moral Science from Classes IV to IX. It was a challenge and joy for me to be with the children of the low income group and to give them my best. Our desire was that the students work up to their abilities to become somebody in life. The teachers were excellent and had a goal to empower the children. The students, teachers and the principal worked together as one group. We developed the school philosophy, vision and mission. We got ample financial and educational support from the Tata Companies especially Telecon, Tata Steel, Tata Motors, etc. Telecon initiated a ‘​Jagriti’ (​ awakening) ​program under the leadership of Mr. Peter Banerjee for the Hindi Medium schools of Jamshedpur city. A week-long program of competitions in speech, drama, art, singing, dancing, debate, and quizzes in general knowledge and other subjects were held for those schools every year. Selected children were brought to Gyan Deep Vidyalaya for the finals. These activities made the children self-confident and developed a healthy competitive spirit. By the time the students left our school, every child was on the stage to perform confidently one time or the other. As we had a well-planned school program for the development of the students, all teachers worked hard to help them reach their goals and improve a little more than they had earlier performed. Some of the teachers sponsored the educational expenses of children from poor families. The school had built up a family spirit. I stayed in Birsanagar till 2010, and it was one of my golden years of teaching experience, and my golden jubilee year, too. In 2007, I was elected a board member. In June 2010, as part of the experimentation for the bifurcation of India Province, I stayed in Snehalayam, Trichy, for two years. Josita Eniakattu, SCN, stayed with the Chandapura community. When I had nothing special to do for the province, I helped out in St. Vincent Matriculation School till 2012. In June 2012, I joined Nazareth Academy, the new English medium school inaugurated in April during our bicentennial year as a gift for the people of Mokama. The school began with twenty-six pre-school children, senior and junior kindergarten. New students kept coming, and, by year end, we had close to forty children. Though Sister Rena Simon Fernandes, SCN, the principal, stayed in Gaya and supervised the school, very often I was the acting principal till December 2012. Classes were held in St. Xavier’s School from April to December 2012 while the old Nazareth Hospital building was being remodelled for a primary and kindergarten school. In November, when I showed the remodelled classrooms to one student’s parents, their eyes shined and faces glowed. “Can there be any school building like this in Mokama!”, they exclaimed. This was the first time that anyone had seen the inside of the building. In January 2013, students were brought to the new site and they were delighted. Children touched the fruits on the tiles of the walls and some of them kissed various interesting pictures. Sister Rena joined the school in January 2013, and the school started to function as a regular school. Every year, a class was added, and, now, the school has reached up to Class VII with over six hundred students. 11 �Every year teachers were given in-service training. We have taken it as our own responsibility to make the school the best in the locality. We wish for our students to imbibe sound values and love God and their neighbour. It was the desire of the people in Mokama to have an English School run by the Sisters. Most of the parents are non-English speaking people. From the beginning of the school until now, no leaf was left unturned to make the students academically excellent. I have been at Nazareth Academy, Mokama, from June 2012 up to the present, teaching students, mentoring teachers, organizing extra-curricular activities for students, and helping them to exhibit their talents through dramas, speeches, exhibitions, quizzes, etc. I also helped to select and purchase books for the school library and helped the librarian to organize the books. I am still attached to the school. So many golden opportunities enabled me to interact lovingly with our Sisters in the Western Province. As a junior Sister, I had the privilege of living with eighty Juniors in the Juniorate in the 1960s at Nazareth for three years. Some of them were older than I, a few others younger, and the majority were of my age! We prayed together, ate together, had recreation together; some of us attended college classes together. We had opportunities to share with one another our inner joys and struggles; also, we had opportunities to mingle with other SCNs when they came to Nazareth for summer school. We got acquainted with many of them; we also got to know some of them more closely. I got to know some of our SCN professors during informal gatherings. Experience of SCNs during our temporary missions was another way of getting strongly bonded in the SCN Family. In later years, after the college studies, there were many opportunities to meet with the SCNs from the Western Province, and the bonds became stronger. I am proud to say that I know many SCNs of the Western Province personally; it has made a great difference in my life! Thinking congregationally has become second nature to me. I thank God for the SCN Congregation! Love you all, my dear Sisters! Strong bonds exist between the SCNs of Patna and Bangalore Province, too. I don’t experience that we are in two provinces in India. Let us continue to thank God for calling us to the SCN Congregation! Books and Persons who influenced me: ​Mahatma Gandhi; Saint Alphonsa; Saint Vincent de Paul and Mother Catherine Spalding; Martin Luther King Jr.; Saint Mother Teresa of Kolkata Books:​ The Bible Books on Mother Mary Lives of Saints Seven Storey Mountains​ by Thomas Merton Man’s Search for Meaning​ by ​Viktor E. Frankl Abraham Lincoln: A Spiritual Biography​ by Elton Trueblood Inspirational Books by modern authors like Sudha Murty, Paulo Coelho, etc. Religious Life: A call to Holiness; Articles, homilies and Collection of poems/stories God Experiences: ​a) After one month retreat; b) After Confession every time; c) During Meditation; d) Sharing with friends​ ​and during hard times I resort to prayer, spiritual direction and letting go. 12 �Faith experiences: I know a woman who for over twenty years suffered from menstrual cramps. She was treated for it by various doctors, but got only temporary relief. One of the gynaecologists whom she consulted had told her that she would need a surgery by the time she would reach her mid-thirties. When she was about thirty-three years old she had an opportunity to be prayed over by a charismatic preacher, Reverend Father Jim Borst. As soon as the woman described her problem to this priest he told her, “Jesus wants you to be cured of this pain.” The woman believed that Jesus would cure her. Father Borst prayed over her for complete relief from the cramps. The woman waited in faith to experience the healing in the following month and, sure enough, the miracle took place. She was healed! Praise God! She lives with deep gratitude to God for this healing and glorifies God by telling others about the marvel Jesus wrought in her life. And who is this woman? It is none other than the narrator of this story, Sister Ann George Mukalel. One day in 1990, while I was monitoring a poultry farming project for the poor villagers of Naya Nagar in Saharsa district of Bihar, I was returning from the market in a cycle rickshaw with some chicken feed, a few vegetables and a large sum of money from the bank which belonged to the beneficiaries of the project. Before entering the village of the target group, I had to cross a short bridge on the main road. This bridge is in a lonely area. When my rickshaw crossed that bridge a short, fat young man who was hiding under the bridge walked over to my rickshaw briskly and stopped the rickshaw. There was no other soul around. I was petrified. He asked the rickshaw puller what was in the big bundle on the rickshaw. I told him that there was some chicken feed for the poultry farm and some vegetables. He stared at me for a while and then told the rickshaw that he could proceed to the village. It was a real miracle that he did not search the bags carefully. God didn’t let him see the poor people’s precious savings. God protects us when we are in vulnerable situations. Such moments of grace are in store for all of us when we place ourselves in God’s hands. An amusing, yet frightening, incident happened when I was going to the Block Development officer’s residence to get a necessary permission regarding the aforementioned poultry farming project. I had to cross a large, paddy field where cows, oxen, buffalos, goats, etc. were grazing freely. There was nobody with those animals. It was a hot day, and so, I opened my red umbrella. A buffalo began to chase me. Little did I realize that my red umbrella had stirred up fear in the buffalo causing it to chase me. Immediately, I closed the umbrella and used it as a weapon to fend myself. Suddenly, the buffalo turned the other way and ran for its life. God gave me the awareness that the red colour of the umbrella irritated that creature and once the umbrella was closed, it was at ease. My life, also, like those of most people, has had its sunny, cloudy and rainy days, especially in mid-life. Personality clashes, misunderstandings, etc. marred the tranquillity of life. Retreats, renewals, meditations, reflections and readings helped me to look at myself more realistically without condemning myself or others. Life has taught me that all have rights and duties and I need to respect them. Also, I must let others grow as they are directed by their inner voice. Living this thought pattern has helped me to love and reverence my sisters and brothers. After having had 13 �healthy dialogues with other people, I now better realize that they have the right to hold their opinions or belief systems. I try not to force my view of anything of importance on others. I keep in touch with the former students of Nazareth Academy, Gaya, and Gyan Deep Vidyalaya, Birsanagar through alumnae associations. I have gathered treasures by having relationships with strangers especially the poor en route to the village of our beneficiaries in Naya Nagar. Our mere presence made an impact in their lives. People would stop to talk to us, smile at us and even in the overcrowded bus the conductor would make place for us to sit. My two siblings Sebastian (brother) and Aleykutty (sister), went to their heavenly abode on December 4, 2013 and February 19, 2018 respectively. With this all my immediate family members are in heaven now except my sister-in-law. I look forward to sustaining the inner peace and peace in the world, and real loving relationship with one another wherever I am. And I wish the same for others, whoever they are. I have come to believe unless we are one with God, peace cannot be realized. To anyone who asks me what religious life has meant to me, I would say, “Come and stay with me.” “The answer, my friend, is blowin’ in the wind The answer is blowin’ in the wind.” ​(Bob Dylan, Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers) Sister Ann George Mukalel, SCN Completed on February 21, 2020 Consent given to publish the story at SCN website 14 � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Sisters of Charity of Nazareth Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview Unknown Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Ann George Mukalel, SCN Location The location of the interview India Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Ann George Mukalel, SCN Oral History Subject The topic of the resource Mukalel, Ann George, SCN; Sisters of Charity of Nazareth Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource SCN Archival Center Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived SCN Archival Center Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2/21/2020 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Permission for any type of publication of archival materials, including text, photographs, video, or audio must be secured from the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth Archival Center before publication. Contact archives staff for appropriate forms and contact information. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF Language A language of the resource English Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context MMC-AnnGeorgeMukalel Sisters of Charity of Nazareth https://scfederationarchives.org/files/original/836c1b6d32ab26439f9e4ffc925b8edc.JPG 6242454c8a8ac0581486866b8c97cb9d Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Artists’ Palette and Brush used by William Lamprecht circa 1901 Subject The topic of the resource Subject Mural painters Mural painting and decoration--20th century. Convents--United States--History--20th century. Monasticism and religious orders for women -- Catholic Church -- History Catholic Church. Archdiocese of Cincinnati (Ohio) Sisters of Charity of Cincinnati Cincinnati (Ohio) Mount Saint Joseph (Ohio) Description An account of the resource Description For the eight months it took to execute the mural, William Lamprecht and his wife, Augusta, resided at Mount St. Joseph where he loved to take long walks to enjoy “God’s great Panorama.” A faith-filled man, the artist recognized his talent as a gift from God. He never began a project without preceding it with a novena of prayer and fasting. Each morning, he rose with the tower bell at 5 AM, attended Mass with the Sisters and received Holy Communion. When he began his painting each day, he left strict orders not to be disturbed. Lamprecht’s mural in the Motherhouse Immaculate Conception Chapel sanctuary dome, painted on a doubly curved surface like the inside of a bell, is of Mary Immaculate. Mary is depicted as the “woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars” (Rev. 12:1). The figure of Mary is 15 feet tall and the entire mural rises 65 feet above the wainscoting. Above the figure of Mary is God the Father and the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove. The central figure is surrounded by angels, each representing a scriptural symbol associated with Mary’s role in redemption history. Below the figures of Gabriel and Michael, are angels carrying a crown, a lily branch, a psaltery, a palm of victory, the rod of Jesse, the Ark of the Covenant, a star, and a harp. The herald angel at the base carries a scroll: “In unbra manus suae protexit me” (In the shadow of His hand He hath protected me). When he completed his work, Mother Sebastian asked the artist how this mural compared to his other paintings. He replied thoughtfully, “It is my last and my best.” Shortly after completing the mural, Lamprecht’s health began to decline and, in 1904, he retired to his native country of Germany. He died March 19, 1922. Generations of Sisters of Charity, students at Mount St. Joseph Academy and the College of Mount St. Joseph, families, and guests have been awed and inspired by Lamprecht’s work as well as his devotion that shines through each brushstroke. A true blessing for many! Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Unknown Manufacturer A well-used brush and painter’s palette preserved more than one century ago are reminders of a significant chapter in the history of the Sisters of Charity of Cincinnati. In 1899, Mother Sebastian Shea traveled to New York City in search of a muralist to paint the half-dome above the altar in the Motherhouse’s Immaculate Conception Chapel. The German painter William Lamprecht accepted the commission, excited by the size and scope of the project. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Sisters of Charity of Cincinnati Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available N/A Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource ca. 1901 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource N/A Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Online access is provided for research purposes only. For rights, reproduction, and use requests or more information, please contact the Sisters of Charity of Cincinnati Archivist Relation A related resource N/A Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Equipment and tools; Art and decorative works Mural is 65 feet tall, width figure not included in inventory Language A language of the resource Latin Type The nature or genre of the resource Physical object; image Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context N/A Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Mount Saint Joseph (Ohio) Sisters of Charity of Cincinnati https://scfederationarchives.org/files/original/3b12f34b83dbe8741573ac651618bd3d.PNG bc2260fd0c0e1a1286c87a739b76d4df https://scfederationarchives.org/files/original/3cdbba061df7ff6b4ce2a29a095a2fdf.mp3 e2b7d7b01602f7ab1f9363fe38a84ee1 https://scfederationarchives.org/files/original/77b332166306d8883eec884b54765a22.pdf 6b11a63f0bc22894a6dace586442f6cb PDF Text Text Sisters of Charity, Leavenworth, Kansas Transcription of Sister Therese Bangert Interviewed by Jane Kenamore, June 29, 2017 Transcribed by Jessie Lehman, September 7, 2017 Page 1 of 24 JK: This interview is with Sister Therese Bangert. JK: The interviewer is Jane Kenamore, and we are at the Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth Mother House in Leavenworth, Kansas. The date is June 29th, 2017. Sister Therese, can you tell us about your parents, growing up in Nebraska? And what were some of the values that your parents passed on to you? [00:00:38] TB: Before I say that if I can say that I feel grateful to have the opportunity for this interview and in reflecting and preparing for it to put 72 years of life into 20 questions is no small challenge. JK: (Laughs) TB: So, I'm going to trust that the Holy Spirit is going to guide this interview and share what's important for people to know. So, my parents, Gerald and Edna—amazing parents—a genius at not being punishing or rulesoriented but expectations that we be responsible and we were. Both graduated from Creighton University, so the Jesuit influence in my mom and dad and what that meant for us in our lives, it's indescribable, but it filtered through all our lives. My mom also gave great credit to the Ursulines who taught her in high school. So, there was never an emphasis on money although my dad worried about having enough quite often. And when there are 12 children I think that's a legitimate worry. God and faith were important and Catholic was important but there was a great respect for other faiths. JK: And how was there a great respect for other faiths? [00:02:05] TB: One time I remember. We were in the days when people would say only Catholics went to heaven, and my mother said, "Oh, don't you ever say that. That's not right." And in our community you were either Lutheran or Catholic mostly, and the Lutherans were as committed to their faith as we were to ours. So, yes, that is an example of that. JK: Thank you. TB: Now, do I talk about my siblings here and the farm? JK: Sure. I mean we can be informal about this. TB: Ok. So, from my experience siblings are the best gift that your parents give you. And those precious relationships that I had with my 11 siblings continue, just the assurance of all these people who love you when you grow up in a family where the relationships were honored and nurtured. �Sisters of Charity, Leavenworth, Kansas Transcription of Sister Therese Bangert Interviewed by Jane Kenamore, June 29, 2017 Transcribed by Jessie Lehman, September 7, 2017 Page 2 of 24 JK: How far apart were you? [00:03:00] TB: Nineteen years for the 12 of us. I'm number three. My oldest sister was in nursing school when my youngest brother was born. JK: So, just 19 years. TB: Right. And he was two when I left home which was very hard for me. I was on the older end so I loved the younger ones and cared for them but I was never their parent. My mom and dad were always the parents. And we had the farm, the luxury of all that space and all the places to adventure. Of the responsible jobs I'd say that truly made a difference for the family if you got the eggs, if you watered the calves and then the riding the tractors and in the grain trucks and the wagons. Our dad took us along a lot. And to this day I never get enough of being outside. JK: Really. And yet you live in the city. [00:04:03] TB: And I live in the city. That's right. (Laughter) TB: And one of my favorite things today is still to go to my brother's at planting and harvest time and ride with them on the tractors and the combines and in the trucks. JK: Oh, yes. That would be fun. Did you go to school in town close to where your farm was? [00:04:24] TB: I went to a one-room country school, K through 8. It was a half a mile from our home and we walked to school and back. Then went to high school at Sacred Heart in Falls City where the Sisters of Charity taught. There were 26 in my graduating class. JK: Did you board or was it close enough to ride to? [00:04:44] TB: It was close enough to go back and forth. It was nine miles. JK: And the SCLs taught at the school. [00:04:53] TB: They taught at the school, yes, and they taught me—very, very good teachers. And my writing that I've used for years, Sister Patricia and Sister Leo Therese, who's now Sister Mary Lou Mendel, taught me those skills that I continue. The skills that are foundational for me I continue to use. But also, I learned at the country school. �Sisters of Charity, Leavenworth, Kansas Transcription of Sister Therese Bangert Interviewed by Jane Kenamore, June 29, 2017 Transcribed by Jessie Lehman, September 7, 2017 Page 3 of 24 JK: So, was that where you were first attracted to religious life, in high school or where? [00:05:23] TB: I'd say I was not attracted to religious life. JK: Oh. TB: I liked the SCLs and I respected them, but I had a call and it was an unmistakable call. And though I wasn't pleased, God is God and I answered. My decision came totally out of that call. JK: Really. And how did you feel that call? [00:05:48] TB: How did I feel it? JK: Yes. TB: I can tell you the moment. I was riding home on the school bus from a ballgame and… A priest in our high school, Father Kallen (phonetic) said to me, "I ask this of everybody, but do you think you have a vocation?" And that was kind of the first—what do I want to say?—blip on the screen, and I said, "Well, I'm not saying I don't but I'm going to go to college first." And then he said, "If you have a vocation cherish it like a wet lily pad." And I said to him, "Am I supposed to cherish a wet lily pad?" I remember it. JK: (Laughs) TB: But that didn't leave me. And coming home on the school bus that night in the dark and with tears I heard the call and I responded. JK: And did you join the community right after…? TB: High school. JK: Right after high school? [00:06:48] TB: Yes, I did. Yes, I did. And I add that I was graced with… Once I was here I'm not saying I never struggled with the vocation, but it was not primary for me at all, any struggles, I was at peace. It was very hard leaving but I was at peace. JK: And when did you join? [00:07:11] TB: 1963. �Sisters of Charity, Leavenworth, Kansas Transcription of Sister Therese Bangert Interviewed by Jane Kenamore, June 29, 2017 Transcribed by Jessie Lehman, September 7, 2017 Page 4 of 24 JK: Oh. So that was early. So, you couldn't go for home visits or anything of that sort. TB: That's right. That's right. JK: That must have been very difficult. [00:07:21] TB: Very difficult. JK: Were there any other siblings who went into religious life? [00:07:31] TB: No. I have no other sibling that entered religious life. JK: Oh. Ok. What do you remember about your early ministry at St. Vincent's Home in Topeka, and how did that experience affect you? [00:07:50] TB: Can I go back to Vatican II for a moment? JK: Sure. TB: Ok. JK: Oh, I'm sorry. We left that out, didn't we? TB: I was fascinated in ways with Pope John XXIII, so he became a hero of mine, and my religious name was John Paula. And I had all kinds of reasons for being John, but we had to get it on a three-by-five card so I narrowed it down to that it was for the love of John the XXIII and the zeal of St. Paul. But so the structure after Vatican II changed from all of us doing the same thing at the same time and one of the welcomed things was we went from superiors who had a lot of discretionary power to more personal responsibility for each of us. I personally resisted the habit change. The superior told us at one point that we had to change where I was. And so I did. JK: And why did you resist it? [00:08:51] TB: That interesting… Well, I resist a lot and then I get there. And so that's kind of a theme of my life. So, it was welcomed to have an ability to connect with our families and to eat with them and to go home. JK: And how soon did that come? You joined in… [00:09:11] TB: '63. I asked Mother Leo Frances in '66 if I could go home to my brother's graduation which she allowed me to do, but you just go over night. I asked to go to my parent's 25th wedding �Sisters of Charity, Leavenworth, Kansas Transcription of Sister Therese Bangert Interviewed by Jane Kenamore, June 29, 2017 Transcribed by Jessie Lehman, September 7, 2017 Page 5 of 24 anniversary. Again, you just go over night. But she gave me permission to do those things. But it was still pretty constrained and I kind of now have forgotten the rhythm. But I was stationed in Los Angeles for six years, from '66 to '72. So, I was far away from the center of the community, but the real difficult thing was when so many Sister friends left. JK: I'll bet. I'll bet that was really hard. Of your class, for example, how many left? [00:10:04] TB: We started with 50, although Sister Susie (phonetic) always said one person only… she just came overnight. She never did even file down her fingernails. (Laughter) TB: But we had 50. But when we celebrated our Golden Jubilee there were four of us. JK: Only four. TB: Yes, and now there are three. JK: Oh, my gosh. How did you deal with that because you were losing Sister after Sister at a certain period of time? Would that have been the early 70s then or what? [00:10:43] TB: Right, because in Los Angeles at one of the years—I can't necessarily remember which one—oh, let me see, it was '69 maybe. JK: Ok. TB: That two Sisters came that I lived with were there and on December 8th, I remember it was the Holy Day, and they came in to tell me they were leaving. Yes. I don't know. You just dealt, I guess. And an interesting thing I want to mention was that one Sister was sent to L.A. to live with us because the leaders felt she was a rebel rouser and really she was a forward thinker, and she's in the community to this day. JK: Oh, really. [00:11:24] TB: But Los Angeles, we were somewhat out of the mainstream when we were out there compared to around here. And that was quite a time. JK: Did you ever entertain any thoughts of leaving? [00:11:39] TB: I'd say not really seriously, no. I struggled with the faithfulness to stay a couple times but never really seriously, and that was a grace. JK: Thank you. �Sisters of Charity, Leavenworth, Kansas Transcription of Sister Therese Bangert Interviewed by Jane Kenamore, June 29, 2017 Transcribed by Jessie Lehman, September 7, 2017 Page 6 of 24 TB: So, I'm willing to go to St. V's now. JK: Ok. TB: St. Vincent's. JK: What do you remember about St. Vincent's and your experience there in Topeka? [00:12:03] TB: It changed me for life. JK: Oh really. TB: Yes. Both in what the children taught me and the quality of community life those nine years. I would just say there was a depth to our community life and part of it I think was because of the intensity of working with the kids all day. JK: Was this when it was an orphanage or was this when it was a home for troubled… TB: It was the home for troubled kids. JK: …troubled kids? [00:12:28] TB: And their stories were as different as the 24 of them. But the community life those years was a depth that I've not experienced ever since. But we worked hard; we prayed deeply, and we had fun together. And it was a very special time and I still have bonds with some of those… deep bonds with those women. And I'd say the children gave me a doctorate in incarnational theology. They taught me of the pain and suffering and the potential for grace in brokenness. They entered me into a world completely foreign to me from my life on the farm. The first staffing I attended was on an 11year-old girl that her father had prostituted. A student I taught had been kicked out of three kindergartens, and he was eight years old and he couldn't read the word "me." A child who had lived in 12 foster homes—she was 14. And the list goes on. Now, remember I'm the third in a family of 12. I was used to kids doing what I asked them to do, and these kids absolutely ignored me. It was just like I was shocked. I'd tell them to do something. They just looked at me and did the opposite. And I hadn't been teased about my buck teeth since grade school, but these kids pointed it out. I said that I identified with the woman in the Gospel who was giving her two pennies and Jesus talked about those who gave out of their abundance and then she gave out of her need. And I thought, boy, in this situation I am giving out of my need. It was a challenge. �Sisters of Charity, Leavenworth, Kansas Transcription of Sister Therese Bangert Interviewed by Jane Kenamore, June 29, 2017 Transcribed by Jessie Lehman, September 7, 2017 Page 7 of 24 JK: Do you have any happy ending stories with the kids that you've dealt with? [00:14:26] TB: Well, my Gary when I come… JK: Oh, ok. TB: …to tell you about. I keep touch with Yvonne. So, those are probably the two of the kids and Gary's brother, Michael, who has since died. JK: Good. And then you were at Topeka State Hospital for a time, and that might have been a challenging experience. What do you remember from that? [00:14:53] TB: Well, my first year at Topeka State I took Clinical Pastoral Education which is CPE. And it was a great foundation really for the rest of my life. It taught me to reflect with a group on my personal strengths and weaknesses in being a chaplain. And in that program they do not hold back on what your weaknesses are. So, it was not an easy year but a very good year in terms of teaching me about myself and the way I ministered. Then for the next 13 years I was a Catholic chaplain there. And it happened that when I finished my CPE training the priest who was to come to be the Catholic chaplain at the hospital and do the weekly Catholic service at the prison, he left. And so I asked the head priest in the region if I could have that position. They didn't have a priest for it. And he said yes. So, that's how I moved into that and it was part-time. JK: And was this a mental hospital? [00:15:57] TB: Yes. It was a mental hospital. JK: It was. Ok. That's what I was assuming but then I was sort of thinking maybe it wasn't. TB: The patients there taught me their ability to worship as a community, because every Sunday we had a communion service, their ability to care about each other and participate in that. They also taught me the heavy burden that mental illness is both for them and for their families. I can't say that enough, of what a burden. And, again, I encountered kids, most of them who were there for behavior reasons more than mental illness, and most of them had no family connections. JK: And then not long after that they opened the mental hospitals and sent everybody out. TB: That's right. JK: And what was your reaction to that? [00:16:52] �Sisters of Charity, Leavenworth, Kansas Transcription of Sister Therese Bangert Interviewed by Jane Kenamore, June 29, 2017 Transcribed by Jessie Lehman, September 7, 2017 Page 8 of 24 TB: They went to the prisons and the jails, 'cause prisons and jails can't say no to them. So, there's a lot of quite good research that says how many of the people in our prisons and jails are mentally ill. JK: Really. TB: And I remember the sheriff in Johnson County, which is right south of where I live, the rich county—his name is Frank Denning—saying publicly, "I run the biggest mental health system in the state." JK: Oh, my gosh. TB: In his jail. So, people are trying to do more and more kind of interceding before people get to the jail. There is some push toward that in our country. This was interesting. During my time at Topeka State I met and talked with Dr. Karl Menninger. I don't know if people here know who Dr. Karl Menninger was, but he was an internationallyknown psychiatrist. And I had a personal relationship with him, in fact. JK: Oh, you did. TB: Yes. And he had great empathy for people who were imprisoned and wrote that book called something about the sin of punishment or… And he went to the prisons and talked to the prisoners. In fact, at one point in the days when the prisons were a little freer than they are now—I can't imagine them letting me do this now—but I was connected with the minimum security prison through worship, and I took three of the men from the Stop Violence group, put them in my car, took them out to visit with Dr. Karl… JK: Really. [00:18:49] TB: …at the Menninger Foundation. And I ended up being at his bedside in the days before he died. JK: Really. TB: Yes. Anyway, he had great empathy with them. JK: I haven't heard that name for a long time. You probably should spell it for the transcriber. TB: K-A-R-L, Dr. Karl, and M-E-N-N-I-N-G-E-R. �Sisters of Charity, Leavenworth, Kansas Transcription of Sister Therese Bangert Interviewed by Jane Kenamore, June 29, 2017 Transcribed by Jessie Lehman, September 7, 2017 Page 9 of 24 JK: Thanks. You've been involved in social justice, a ministry that I really admire personally. When did you realize you wanted to take part in changing society for the better? [00:19:41] TB: As I reflect when I made my first communion at eight years old I prayed for an end to the Korean War. JK: Oh, really. TB: I don't even know how quite I was aware of that. But I remember that specifically. And as a high schooler I was aware of the mistreatment of people who were black, especially noted that some motels allowed dogs but not people who were black. That was an underlying thing. So, perhaps God's spirit in me was nudging me early on to be an advocate. And then the Sisters of Charity in the days when I was teaching school in Los Angeles and then taking care of kids at St. Vincent's. Like our Sister Eileen Sheehy, along with many other faith leaders, answered the call of Dr. King to come and join them in walking across the Edmund Pettus Bridge. I think I'm remembering that incident correctly. JK: Really. TB: And we have her picture doing that. JK: Was she injured? [00:20:50] TB: No. JK: Good. TB: He asked them to come after they had been met walking across that with the fire hoses and the dogs. So, at that point it went peacefully, I think. And I don't know specifically about the '60s and '70s, but I know Sister Marie de Paul Combo, who was my mentor and a leader among us SCLs, she was a leader to call us to live out our constitution where it said we commit to justice and charity. And she highlighted the distinction. Charity is giving to people; justice is looking at why people are poor, why people have these needs and looking at more systemic things. And Marie de encountered lots of resistance. Social justice really was a bad word throughout a lot of the community. JK: Is that right? TB: But she trudged on through it all calling us… JK: I was going to ask why was there resistance. [00:21:58] �Sisters of Charity, Leavenworth, Kansas Transcription of Sister Therese Bangert Interviewed by Jane Kenamore, June 29, 2017 Transcribed by Jessie Lehman, September 7, 2017 Page 10 of 24 TB: I think people felt like that as a religious that wasn't our job. JK: I see. Charity was but social justice was out of the realm. TB: But she called us to boycott the grapes for the farm workers. She called us to advocate for debt relief at the turn of the century. She called us to advocate against the welfare reform that was being proposed in 1996. She had the total community make a statement against the death penalty. She just kept at it. And she tried to get us to understand the power of institutions like the World Bank. And the good of people like the United Nations. And to this day I stand on her shoulders. JK: Oh, that's wonderful. And how much older was she than you at the time? [00:22:55] TB: She's in her 90s now, and I'm 72, so she's probably 20 years older than I am. JK: Right. Ok. TB: And she came from a background that her father was a union man for the Butte mines in Butte, Montana. JK: Oh, wow. Yes. TB: But she was dogged in her not giving up when it would have been easy to give up. JK: And so you stood with her. TB: Not always, no. No. She did that. I got into that circle at some point. When the community decided to have a Social Justice Committee in the community and I was one of the beginning members of that committee. And I even forget what date that was but Sister Mary Kathleen Stefani was our leader at that time. JK: Great. So, what were your early experiences in advocating for social justice? What issues did you take up? [00:23:57] TB: So my chaplaincy at the hospital and at the prison, and that was just on Sundays, was a halftime position. So I asked the community if I could volunteer two days at the Emergency Center for the poor in Topeka. And through that I got connected to the capitol and some of the issues around poverty in the Kansas Legislature. So, I asked if I could spend those two days during the legislative session that I spent at the Emergency Center, if I could spend those at the capitol. And that happened in 1987 which was the year that we had a new governor in Kansas who said he was going to have a death penalty bill signed on his desk by March the 1st. And I have to say that I just noted to me… I was concerned because we had elderly losing care because of our budget �Sisters of Charity, Leavenworth, Kansas Transcription of Sister Therese Bangert Interviewed by Jane Kenamore, June 29, 2017 Transcribed by Jessie Lehman, September 7, 2017 Page 11 of 24 issues. We had farmers losing their farms because of… and we're talking about the main priority is the death penalty? It was a political wedge in those days. And in the past six or eight years the legislature had passed death penalty bills but then-Governor John Carlin always vetoed them. So, it seemed like a shoe-in to get this passed. So, I started with the death penalty issue in the Kansas Legislature. And it began to teach me the system. So, the House passed a bill to reinstate the death penalty. The senators went slower and I think that myself with another young man named Michael, who really taught me how to even find these offices, we talked to every senator and six senators changed their vote, so we had a vote that they did not reinstate the death penalty. JK: Really. [00:26:12] TB: And in some ways that was not a good introduction to legislative work because most things you worked on for years. And I remember Father John Stitz, who was a great friend of the Sisters and worked farm issues in the legislature, calling me up the night of the vote and saying, "I am so jealous, because I can't believe that you all got this in your first year." Well, one of the big things I learned is that things come back. So, the next year they're back at trying to get the death penalty reinstated. I was just shocked. After you do all that it's back the next year. Another thing in 1998 when I was working with the Kansas Catholic Conference they had a big tax bill they were working on. And the Conference—and I was the lead person in the Conference with this—advocated for a refundable earned income tax credit in the Kansas tax system, so it would add to what people get from the federal earned income tax. And it was basically for lowincome working parents. And still today that puts nearly 90 million dollars in the pockets directly of low-income working parents who file their tax returns and have earned income. [00:27:31] Then in 2004 one of the issues that we worked… We began to work the immigration issues and Kansas was one of the first states to give in-state tuition to young people who are not citizens but who graduated from high school, and they could go to any Regents university for in-state tuition. JK: Interesting. TB: Yes. People can hardly believe that. So, some of the things I learned about that was that in the legislature you have no permanent friends and no permanent enemies in advocacy and among the legislators. You never really know who your friend might be. And you might win one year and next year you're back at it. Like I'm saying, every year there is always an effort to repeal the in-state tuition and an effort to repeal the refundable income credit. JK: But they haven't passed yet. �Sisters of Charity, Leavenworth, Kansas Transcription of Sister Therese Bangert Interviewed by Jane Kenamore, June 29, 2017 Transcribed by Jessie Lehman, September 7, 2017 Page 12 of 24 TB: They haven't passed. Just this past year again the earned income tax credit we have… JK: So, your legislature then must be somewhat liberal, much more so than I thought if they're not passing that. [00:28:42] TB: (Laughs) No, you've heard rightly. On the immigration issues we have a strong business coalition. JK: Oh, I see. TB: They're not necessarily out in front like on the in-state tuition but they'll talk about it behind the doors, and they are the people who give money to these legislators. And plus the education community has been very strong. The Regents—we've had Regent leaders who come in. And these are also people that legislators know. So it's been a miracle that, right, the in-state tuition and that we've held onto that and the earned income tax credit. And to be fair that Governor Brownback behind the scenes, he didn't want an in-state tuition repeal on his desk. JK: He didn't. TB: No, no. No. I mean he's not going to come out front about it. And he behind the scenes said we're not going to do anything to refundable earned income tax credits. But I've learned that I always need a team and I'm a good team member. Also, another thing I've learned legislators are called to do an incredible amount of listening. I mean it has to get boring because it's boring to sit there, and I don't have to do it as much as they do. So, when I give testimony I pray to the Holy Spirit to help me be creative and say something to engage them. So, I have this reputation now in the legislature as a testifier that is creative so people… I feel some pressure now that they're listening to what Sister Therese is going to say in her testimony. (Laughs) JK: Oh, that's great. (Laughs) So, you did some personal social justice work in your prison work. Can you tell us about working with the prisoners and what you learned? And then you also mentioned you have an adopted son, Gary. So, if you could tell us a little bit about that part of your life. [00:30:51] TB: Ok. JK: And social justice too. TB: I trace my prison work back to my Grandpa Bukoff (phonetic) who was on the Falls City City Council, and he took the responsibility for the jail. He said nobody else wanted it. And he said, "They aren't bad fellows." And he would take them out of the jail and have jobs for them to �Sisters of Charity, Leavenworth, Kansas Transcription of Sister Therese Bangert Interviewed by Jane Kenamore, June 29, 2017 Transcribed by Jessie Lehman, September 7, 2017 Page 13 of 24 do and then he would go get them Cokes and candy. So, I say my prison thing came from Grandpa Bukoff (phonetic). So, I started in the prisons in '73 when a Sister from another community invited me. And that led me to go weekly to the Mass at the Topeka prison with the priest. I forget kind of the timing of this but at one point, I say this with humility I hope, but he was a terrible homilist, and it just did not ever connect, from my point of view, with the prisoner's lives. So, I asked him if I could do the homily. And he told me I could. JK: Oh, good. TB: He was pretty forward thinking. Anyway, so I begin to preach in the prisons but nobody cared about who preached in the prisons. So, I did that for years. Then when I took the chaplaincy of the Topeka State Hospital that also included that piece to go weekly to the prison and do the Catholic service. So, I did a communion service which was the liturgy of the Word, really the same structure that we have at Eucharist. And then I would go to the Our Father, to that place, and we would have a communion service. And through the years, the 13 years, they opened a minimum security prison. I took that on every Sunday. And then when they moved the maximum security women from Lansing up here to Topeka I started doing the service there and then trained lay people to do the communion services. And a piece of my prison ministry that I'm most grateful for is that four of the lay people I prepared to do communion services are still at the prisons today ministering there and doing that. So when I left Topeka that continued which I have always felt… JK: That's good. Yes. [00:33:26] TB: I mentioned something that probably not a lot of people know that at one point in my prison ministry at the maximum security diagnostic center a prisoner lingered after the Sunday service and then he grabbed me around the neck. And my response was immediately to push back. And I got away from him and went… moving out of that room and right into a pod of all the men saying, "Officer, officer." And the guy was behind me saying, "Don't tell. Don't tell." And I said, "You've already done it. I'm going to tell." I mean I remember saying that. So, of course investigators talked to me etcetera, etcetera. And my thought was they're going to say at the prison that this little woman can't do this anymore. But, instead, they gave me an officer, so after that I always had an officer in the room with me; before I had not. [00:34:25] So, I go to pray with the prisoners because I need their witness of their faith, those who choose to come. I'm dealing with those who choose to come to a worship. Because of their humility most of them face their sins and their depth in breaking the Word. I've always dialogued with them about what the scripture means for them. Praying with them helps me. �Sisters of Charity, Leavenworth, Kansas Transcription of Sister Therese Bangert Interviewed by Jane Kenamore, June 29, 2017 Transcribed by Jessie Lehman, September 7, 2017 Page 14 of 24 I've also learned how vulnerable the kids at St. Vincent's are and those like them to ending up in the prison system. How those with mental illness end up there. JK: Was the one that grabbed you around the neck, did he have mental illness, do you think? [00:35:16] TB: I don't know. I kind of presume he did. They told me he had been aggressive with one of the nurses too. JK: Oh, really. TB: Or at least something about women—that he didn't like us. And also how vulnerable so many are to the call of the streets, I call it, and then a system that's ready to eat them up. JK: What do you mean by that, gang activity or being homeless on the streets? [00:35:50] TB: I would mean more gang activity or maybe "gang" in quotes. That you get with your buddies and then the smart buddies don't do the things that get the most time. I mean they have those who are, I want to say, not as smart do the things that… or the young ones go and do things and they get involved in things that are way over their head. And one of the questions, if I might say, you ask about fix for prisons—what would be my take on that. I think we have to continue to work on the systemic causes of poverty. I'd like to see us reinstate the Pell Grants that allow those in prison have education. That's been taken away. And I'd like to see more societal law enforcement energy on white collar crime, 'cause I think you can send people to war on a false pretense and not have any repercussions. And it seems to me at times that kills a lot more people. Or you can cheat the poor and not pay them wages or not pay them living wages. Some of those things to me are things that need more emphasis, 'cause we talk about all the violence is the shooting and the fights and that's not all the violence. Poverty is a violence. JK: And would you include funding education well in that? [00:37:33] TB: Surely, because we know there are great discrepancies in the public schools where I am. And I would say one of the things when I moved to Wyandotte County was my horror at what people got As and Bs for. I mean it's not grades that are important. It's can somebody read? Can somebody think? And so this just passing people along, it's wrong. Yes, I would include… But it's very important that we keep the public education system strong. I can go to Gary now if you're ready for me to go to Gary. (Laughs) �Sisters of Charity, Leavenworth, Kansas Transcription of Sister Therese Bangert Interviewed by Jane Kenamore, June 29, 2017 Transcribed by Jessie Lehman, September 7, 2017 Page 15 of 24 JK: Yes. Tell us about Gary. [00:38:21] TB: Gary's been the biggest surprise of all God's gifts to me. Some parts of his story are his to tell. However, I was his childcare worker for him and his younger brother, Michael, when he was nine and Michael was six when I first met them and that was at St. Vincent's Home. I left after a year there but always kept some touch with the two of them. So, when Gary got out of foster care he had no one. I stayed connected and served as his CASA, Court Appointed Special Advocate, in Juvenile Court until he was discharged at 21. And one day he introduced me to a friend as his mom. Well, I kept my startle to myself but I continued our walk. And once you give me that title he was stuck with me. Although I'd say along the way he would have liked to have gotten rid of me. I tell people that his "moming" me was no honorary title that we've walked the walk. He has been one of my favorite and most influential teachers. He's taught me a hint of what it means to belong to no one. A hint of the white privilege that I live with, a hint of the financial struggles of making it on your own, a hint of the emotional challenge of living as an adult with the effects of childhood trauma. And a hint of the burden of racism and the incidents that never quit. And I proudly claim him as my son, as a wonderfully compassionate person who's very much respected in his profession as a fine dining waiter. JK: Oh, that's great. So, where does he live now? [00:40:26] TB: He lives in… well, really he lives in Scottsdale, Arizona. JK: Oh. TB: He works in Old Scottsdale but had been in Tempe for nine years and recently moved. JK: Sounds like he's done very well. TB: I don't ever want to undermine his struggle but, yes, he has. JK: You mentioned it in your bio form that you filled out so he must mean a lot to you. [00:40:59] TB: Yes, I'm his mom. And in my family kids are tops. So, yes. JK: Oh, that's great. TB: He's been a surprise gift, as I say. JK: Going back to the death penalty, why do you think it's been so difficult particularly in certain states to overcome this horrible practice? [00:41:32] �Sisters of Charity, Leavenworth, Kansas Transcription of Sister Therese Bangert Interviewed by Jane Kenamore, June 29, 2017 Transcribed by Jessie Lehman, September 7, 2017 Page 16 of 24 TB: My experience is that people feel a loyalty to the victims and the victim's family. And most of us, including the legislators, are pretty uncomfortable with those who've lost loved ones to murder. Their pain is very raw. So, when they come and talk about it it's very raw. So, to get beyond that, what feels like loyalty to the victims, to a place of the reality of the death penalty… like Sister Helen Prejean says there are three things that get you on death row. You're poor; you killed a white person and who your lawyer is. Pope Francis recently just in the last couple months said the death penalty is a mortal sin. That's the strongest church statement we've ever had on this issue. I've been working against it since 1987. I have almost daily contact with the issue in some way, and you won't convince me that it's helpful to anybody. Although I advocate for replacing it with life in prison without parole I have to say that deep in my spirit I have concerns about life in prison without parole too. I think some people, for the safety for themselves and the community, need a structured environment for the rest of their lives. I'm not sure everyone does. And I remind people that in the Scriptures that we hear we hear from Moses who killed in a burst of emotion. We hear from Paul who killed, was a murderer. We hear from David. I pray his psalms daily, his songs (phonetic). David had the most planned, calculated, premeditated murder of Uriah and not just Uriah but his troops, of anybody and the love that came to his heart in his asking for forgiveness. My other example is when Jesus was on the cross with the two others and this one man who society thought was so terrible they should kill him recognized not only that Jesus was innocent but also that he had a Kingdom that was not of this world. And I think he brought Jesus great comfort when they're hanging there naked. And Jesus must have thought what's this all about? I think he brought Jesus great comfort in that recognition. So, those are some of the core things that keep me involved in this issue. JK: And yet there are so many people that are adamant that it should remain. [00:44:54] TB: That has changed some in past years, and there are fewer death penalties being given in the United States, but people in Europe think we're just crazy... JK: I know. TB: …that we have the death penalty yet. Yes. It's a tough issue. And really my involvement with the death penalty was one of the reasons when I came to Wyandotte County besides a friend of many or our Sisters, Marianne Slattery in the district attorney's office in Wyandotte County, said, "Therese, I think you should consider being a police chaplain." And I thought I don't want people saying that naïve Sister (I don't like the word nun) that naïve Sister doesn't know what she's talking about when she talks about what the church says about violence and the death penalty etcetera. Even though with police chaplaincy I've been to many homicide scenes I've never been convinced that more violence or the violence of the death penalty is a solution to any of this. �Sisters of Charity, Leavenworth, Kansas Transcription of Sister Therese Bangert Interviewed by Jane Kenamore, June 29, 2017 Transcribed by Jessie Lehman, September 7, 2017 Page 17 of 24 JK: So, for the past 21 years, I believe you said, you've been a police chaplain. [00:46:03] TB: Right. JK: So, you've been on the other side. TB: Yes. JK: This is really interesting. Well, you just mentioned how you kind of got into it. What exactly do you do as a police chaplain? [00:46:20] TB: So, for about 17 years for 48 hours a month I would carry the police beeper and if they had a call during that time whether it was two o'clock in the afternoon or two o'clock in the morning they would beep you and ask you to come to the scene. So, I say is that in my life before that I always had the protection of a system around me or a structure like a hospital, even in the prison there's a structure. But you are right at the scene so there's no protection for any of that. So, you go to the scene and as one of the men who I really liked, the chaplain said, "I get a tightness in the pit of my stomach every time that beeper goes off. But I say, ok, God. I'll get myself there and you have to take over from there." And that's really… 'cause there's no playbook to tell you how to deal with the scenes. So, you go to the scene and… JK: I'm sorry. Where are you working in Kansas City? [00:47:28] TB: Kansas City, Kansas, in Wyandotte County. JK: Kansas City, Kansas. TB: And you go to the scene and the Holy Spirit is faithful, and you learn a lot about Jesus and the Holy Spirit at those scenes that you don't learn any place else. And sometimes you're just standing there with chaplain on your back. Lots of times you look for some person in the family that might be a connection for you to reach out to the family. JK: The victim's family. TB: The victim's family. JK: Ok. TB: And sometimes you can be somewhat helpful about… that the body's still laying on the ground and they have to wait 'til they take all their pictures and until the morgue comes to pick the body up and that always seems to take a long time. So, you can just say that they need to do �Sisters of Charity, Leavenworth, Kansas Transcription of Sister Therese Bangert Interviewed by Jane Kenamore, June 29, 2017 Transcribed by Jessie Lehman, September 7, 2017 Page 18 of 24 their investigative work, pick up the evidences so it can't be contaminated. One of the hardest things is ordinarily they don't let the victim see the body. JK: Oh, they don't. [00:48:39] TB: Not at the scene or even in the hospital and that's a really difficult thing for family members. Very difficult. And we've worked on that but it's very difficult for them. JK: What has it been like to work with the police? How do you see the police in Kansas City, Kansas? Kansas. [00:49:04] TB: Yes. I'm not naive that there are some bad police officers, but my experience is that the greatest percent of them are good. And I tell them that good police officers are holy, and I believe that deeply. Who deals with the poor in the community? It’s the police. It's a call just like my call. And recently I had a detective say to me, "Nobody leaves this job without having posttraumatic stress syndrome." One thing that I say when people tell me with the death penalty we have it to protect police. I say, "Are you aware that more police die from suicide than from homicide? What are we doing to support them in," I say, "just the bruising and the daggers in their spirit with the things that they encounter day after day?" JK: Do you spend time with them after a traumatic incident ever? [00:50:14] TB: I'm a woman so most of them don't want me to do that, if I can say that bluntly. Although around Detective Lancaster's murder which happened last May I've been able to have some conversations with detectives that I've never had before that were very important to me, and I think important to them. JK: What was the story of Detective Lancaster's murder? [00:50:43] TB: He was shot by a man named Curtis Ayers when he approached him because the Hollywood Casino had called and said we have a person that we're concerned about. And Mr. Ayers had a gun and he shot Detective Lancaster and took his car. And Detective Lancaster died at KU Hospital. So, with an incident like that I got a text that said a police officer's been shot. If you're available please go to police headquarters. And police headquarters is two blocks from my office so I vigiled with mostly the women in the detective bureau that are their support staff for that. And we thought that Detective Lancaster was doing fine and then he wasn't, and then we got word that he died. So, I have walked that walk with them and walked anniversary time. I've observed his widow saying that she agreed to the plea of life in prison without parole. So, Detective �Sisters of Charity, Leavenworth, Kansas Transcription of Sister Therese Bangert Interviewed by Jane Kenamore, June 29, 2017 Transcribed by Jessie Lehman, September 7, 2017 Page 19 of 24 Lancaster was murdered in May of '16. The person who pled guilty, Mr. Ayers, was sentenced in March of 2017 and that was completed. And I didn't have any police officer, and I checked with five to ten, say, oh, he should have had the death penalty. They respected her decision and one of them said to me, "It's God's place to judge not mine." Another one said, "We make mistakes. I don't think the death penalty is necessarily a good idea." And they all know all the legal procedures that happen so it stretches on and on. So, again, I learned. I learned. JK: So, you mentioned your being a woman had a bearing on working closely with the detectives. Have you been able to form close relationships with any of them and what kind of…? [00:53:09] TB: I wouldn't call them close relationships. I would say that I have very respectful relationships with a number of them. I wouldn't call them close relationships. But I've made myself available. On the day that Detective Lancaster was shot and one of the police officers who was with him, another police officer wanting to help him said, "Sister, will you come with me and offer to visit with him." So, I went in and he wasn't interested in visiting with me. One of the women up in the department said, not a woman police officer but a support staff said, "You're a woman. I'm used to that all the time." So, it's still a man's profession although there are a lot of women there, and I also respect them. JK: But no women police detectives. [00:54:02] TB: Oh, yes. There are women police detectives. JK: But not in this particular office. TB: Yes. Uh-huh. There are. JK: Oh, there are. TB: But it wasn't the woman who had been directly with the police officer, who had been with Detective Lancaster when he was shot. JK: Do you have anything else to share about your police…? Oh, you mentioned earlier where you live with the Sisters in doing your work. [00:54:49] TB: As Sisters of Charity we have an intentional house that was at 8th and Quindaro, which in Kansas City Quindaro was known as Blood Boulevard at one point because it was a high violence area. And we moved into the old rectory which was next to Our Lady of St. Rose �Sisters of Charity, Leavenworth, Kansas Transcription of Sister Therese Bangert Interviewed by Jane Kenamore, June 29, 2017 Transcribed by Jessie Lehman, September 7, 2017 Page 20 of 24 Church, Catholic Church at 8th and Quindaro. So, it began with five of us. When I left last year there were just two of us left. Really, I was going to be the last one left. But we intentionally lived there in the low income, high violence area to be a presence there. And we went out from there to do all our different things. Again, you learn. Just being in that neighborhood you learn a lot. And you learn the quality of the grocery stores. JK: For example. [00:55:43] TB: For example… For one thing they're more expensive. They're dirty. The quality of the food. You get the things that are dented and the things that are close to date of "Best by" if they're not "Best if used by." And you just notice those things. And then eventually those all closed and it's at least a half an hour to a grocery store. People in that neighborhood don't walk for exercise. They walk because that's how a number of them get around. The children, you don't see them outside a lot. There's a swimming pool that's on Quindaro that's four blocks down that I worked with all my years there for one thing—to get them not to close it at six o'clock and to have them open until eight o'clock at least. And then you see the kids come out and walk to the swimming pool. But lots of you say where are these kids coming from? Or when they get on their school busses but you don't see them at other times. By the time we left a lot of immigrants were integrating into that neighborhood and rebuilding the ramshackle houses. JK: Oh, were they? [00:57:10] TB: Yes. So, interesting, yes, interesting changes. JK: And when did you leave? [00:57:16] TB: Last September. September of 2016. JK: Do you live here now? [00:57:22] TB: I live in Kansas City, Kansas yet. JK: Oh, ok. You don't live here at the Mother House. TB: No. I do not. JK: You've also been active lobbying the state legislature and you've worked with the Kansas City Catholic Conference. Can you tell us about that experience and what you've learned in the process? [00:57:49] �Sisters of Charity, Leavenworth, Kansas Transcription of Sister Therese Bangert Interviewed by Jane Kenamore, June 29, 2017 Transcribed by Jessie Lehman, September 7, 2017 Page 21 of 24 TB: I was brought onto the Catholic Conference team to advocate on poverty issues which I did for a number of years and I've forgotten how many. Then our director died of cancer, and after two years under the new director I was informed that they had restructured and they no longer would have my position. So most of us know what restructuring means. (Laughter) TB: The new director with the support of the bishops narrowed the issues we worked on to what really, at that time, were the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops priorities—abortion, gay marriage, religious freedom. JK: Oh. TB: So, as one of the Catholic legislators noted when SCLs allowed me then to lobby in their name it really left me freer. It was a gift of the spirit. So, I could go back to lobbying on the issues of poverty. And I would note that there is significant angst among some of the legislators who are Catholic about the seeming non-voice of the Conference of issues that impact people in poverty. So, I carry the water, in a sense, for the church about those issues, and I'm grateful for that role but that's a tension that's… The church has such a rich tradition of Catholic social teaching and now the words of Pope Francis about the poor. And as SCLs we had Vincent and Louise and Mother Xavier and our rich tradition, so I'm grateful to be a voice within these traditions for the Gospel Values. JK: It's fortunate that you're there, that you are the voice. [00:59:39] TB: It's a gift to be there. I've been there 30 years. And I'd like to mention here the teamwork that I've done with justice leaders of Sisters in five of the Sister communities that are located here in Kansas. So, if something comes up in the legislature I email them out and we physically met at times. And I rely on good info, at times from Catholic Charities, from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops and in particular Network which is the Catholic Sisters Social Justice Lobby that was begun. I think we must be close to 50 years now. JK: The New York Times recently published an article about liberal religions working together for change. How have you found that experience? Or do you have that experience, and what types of projects have you worked on together? [01:00:44] TB: I have to say I don't like the word "liberal." JK: Ok. �Sisters of Charity, Leavenworth, Kansas Transcription of Sister Therese Bangert Interviewed by Jane Kenamore, June 29, 2017 Transcribed by Jessie Lehman, September 7, 2017 Page 22 of 24 TB: I prefer… Now, people would probably call me liberal. I like to say I'm not Democrat or Republican. I'm for policy and advocate for what promotes the common good, because to me liberal gives a label that is not positive to some people. JK: To some people that's true. TB: Just like conservative gives a label that's not positive to some people, and really I don't like either of those labels. JK: Ok. TB: So, I would say I've done more ecumenical work than I have interfaith, and that's, I think, from being in Kansas for one thing. So, for over a decade I have planned with the United Methodist Women their day, their advocacy day that they do at the capitol. And anyway I've been part of their planning team to do that. I should say the United Methodist Women are the leaders of it but other faiths are invited. The Church World Service women are invited. But at the same time I've worked with a woman of the Jewish faith who led the efforts in Johnson County around public school funding. This past year Kansas Interfaith Action had a Muslim day at the capitol. So, those things might be increasing. I say the broader we can make the tent for the common good the better off we are. So I invite those kinds of interactions, and, again, I learn. I really don't know that much about the Muslim religion. So, those are ways that I can learn. JK: How has prayer facilitated your work? [01:02:55] TB: I say that prayer is the patchwork quilt that covers all my work. And my mother had a great devotion to the Holy Spirit. So, that seed was planted in me and I depend on the Holy Spirit in my work. I've always loved the Psalms and the Gospels and they feed me and send me. And as I've gotten older my prayer has fewer words and more silence but I still have many distractions. Community prayer with my Sisters is important to me and vital. So, yes, I say that prayer is at the center and my relationship with our God. JK: And you pray with your community and how else has your community supported you over the years? [01:03:55] TB: I would say Sister Sue Miller who was our leader for12 years and then a councilor. She was my councilor before that. She, when I was in Topeka, when I asked her if I could volunteer two days a week at the Emergency Center she said yes. When I asked her if I could change that from the Emergency Center to go to the legislature she said yes. And at one point when I shared with her my concern that you seem to get more attention in this community for being sick than you do for having courage she offered to come to the legislature with me, and she did. So, those were all significant for me. �Sisters of Charity, Leavenworth, Kansas Transcription of Sister Therese Bangert Interviewed by Jane Kenamore, June 29, 2017 Transcribed by Jessie Lehman, September 7, 2017 Page 23 of 24 JK: Sure. Yes. TB: So, when you look at the array of things I've done I could never have done those without the community support. For one thing they clothe me, and they feed me, and they house me, and they see that I have a car that gets me back and forth to Topeka and other places. JK: And they support you emotionally I'm sure. [01:05:05] TB: Exactly, exactly. And then most recently Sister Eileen Haynes who's the councilor that I touch base with is very supportive of my advocacy work. And I would say Sister Maureen Hall who was our community leader for six years, she was my councilor when we made the move into Quindaro and she helped me when one of the leaders said, "Oh, Therese, you're going to move into this house. It has a hole in the wall," you know. And, "Do you think you could find another house in the community?" But it was Maureen who understood the importance of the connection next to the church, you know. So, we fixed the hole in the wall and then we have a lovely home which children in the neighborhood called a palace. JK: Yes. So, if St. Vincent and Louise visited you today would he recognize the SCL? Would they recognize the SCL as theirs? [01:06:12] TB: I hope Louise and Vincent would recognize us. But we live in a lot of abundance. I live in abundance. I have health insurance. We know what an issue that is for so many people. I have a car that runs. I have a home where the bills are paid without worry. But the passion and the service continue, and I'd just like to quickly share two stories from Sunday. I walked in the door on Sunday for our Jubilee celebration with Sister Judith Hayes, and she said to me, "Therese, you've made me a political radical." JK: (Laughs) TB: "I'm calling those senators," she said. "I've got Mitch McConnell's number in my phone. I have his phone number in my phone. And I have Senator John McCain. I have his number in my phone. You've made me a political radical." JK: (Laughs) TB: And then told me a couple of things she said which were right on, you know. Then later in the afternoon I ran into one of our… Sister Anne Callahan who just had her 88th birthday. And she said, "Therese, I always call when you send out those alerts, because I pray and I ask Jesus, and I say I can't ask Jesus to do something if I'm doing nothing." So, that example of the passion that's still there for the poor, for the poor, I know Louise and Vincent would recognize that. �Sisters of Charity, Leavenworth, Kansas Transcription of Sister Therese Bangert Interviewed by Jane Kenamore, June 29, 2017 Transcribed by Jessie Lehman, September 7, 2017 Page 24 of 24 JK: Absolutely. TB: The abundance is a question. JK: And our last question is what do you think is the future of religious life in general and the SCLs in particular? [01:0810] TB: I think for me the question is what's the future for God's Kingdom? And I see and hear people, not Sisters, doing what I believe is the work of God's heart and hands without calling it what I call it. I think of three national, international organizations in particular and the people who staff them. Jubilee USA which works on debt relief issues for countries where they pay more on their debt and the interest on their debt than they do for healthcare and education in their countries because of unscrupulous leaders and unscrupulous hedge fund buyers who already have more money than they need, but Jubilee USA works that. I think of the Nonviolent Peace Force which came out of the inspiration of a man from the United States, and I forget where the other man was from, but they have people that are like the army except they're not armed. And they go in to negotiate in these places of violence to bring a place where people can safely come together to bring safety to like women that are going out to get firewood etcetera. But that whole concept of a nonviolent peace force to me is the work of a Kingdom. Then there's the Center for Justice and Accountability. Their primary staff recruits pro bono lawyers who go after the higher ups in the human rights abuses. So, they're the people that are looking at who murdered Archbishop Romero, who caused some of the massacres in El Salvador. They just have had a case about Cambodia and the Khmer Rouge or… I don't know if I'm saying the name right. But they're doing bold and much more courageous things than me. And I believe that those are about the Kingdom. So, I believe God's spirit is alive and well in the world. I've been gifted to be a SCL and I'm gifted to serve here, but I'm not worried about what's ahead and I don't know what's ahead but I know the Kingdom, God's Kingdom will continue to come. JK: Thank you so much. TB: Thank you. ### � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Bangert, S. Therese Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview Kenamore, Jane Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data MPEG Duration Length of time involved (seconds, minutes, hours, days, class periods, etc.) 1:11:21 Location The location of the interview Digital Sisters Files Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Bangert, S. Therese, Oral History, 6/29/2017 Subject The topic of the resource Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth; Social Justice; Chaplain; Vatican II Description An account of the resource Sister opens her interview by speaking about her family and upbringing in Nebraska. She mentions that the teachers at her local school were SCLs, creating an early introduction to the community. Initially resistant to the idea of religious life, she clearly remembers the moment she was called to the community during a school trip. In her reflections on her early days in the community, she speaks about the modernization brought about by Vatican II and the difficulties of losing close friends as they chose to leave the community. Her initial posting at St. Vincent's home taught her about the struggles people face as a result of social injustices. She later worked at the Topeka State Hospital, trained as a chaplain, and worked in prison ministry. The trajectory of her mission work illustrated how people can become trapped in the system and drew her to be involved in the Social Justice Committee. While working in Topeka, she also became involved in political issues such as immigration and the death penalty. She also speaks of her adopted son, Gary, and the lessons he has taught her. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Bangert, S. Therese; Kenamore, Jane Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 6/29/2017 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource All rights belong to the Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource MP3 Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Oral History Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Bangert, S. Therese; Kenamore, Jane Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant 1945-2017 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Audios Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth Social Service https://scfederationarchives.org/files/original/e8c59061e3e0fa2ae5af45cc6ba3d2e7.jpg 361b88b60b969cfccc607917b91908c7 https://scfederationarchives.org/files/original/58e4c8a44332fa5db0fae282c3e00b66.mp3 0e020638c3d727517d0cba4918b3c0c8 https://scfederationarchives.org/files/original/045f7aa37546c9397a36f69f0c18b3df.mp3 727129a4d3c3943936de32d8e383edef https://scfederationarchives.org/files/original/762e825369eb9648027b19035211a85f.mp3 804b0be7f0608d179982c55921a7dc2d https://scfederationarchives.org/files/original/26c192ca65c5f2d784d38c9a712f6df5.pdf 183230482c4e0430f945b94bb92fe1ca PDF Text Text 1 · TOH 31 - 1 Sr. Alexine Beam This interview is being conducted as part of the Oral History Program of the Sisters of Charity at Seton Hill. The interviewee is Sister M. Alexine Beam. The interview is being conducted by Sister Marie Corona Miller at Greensburg Faculty House. The date is January twenty-ninth, nineteen eighty-seven. SMCM: Good morning Sr. Alexine! I'm happy to be with you today to talk about your personal history and your history as a Sister of Charity. Would you like to tell us some things? SAB: I was born in Allegheny General Hospital on February twentieth, nineteen seven, the oldest of three children. I have a sister, Hilda, who is thirteen months younger, and a brother, William, who is three years younger. My father was not a Catholic, so I was raised in a semi-Catholic, Lutheran environment. My mother ruled our religion. My father's people were definitely Lutheran. I remember my father coming home one time with papers to become a Mason. At that time, Masons were very hostile toward the Catholic religion. I was only about four years old, but I remember them talking in the living room. We had a big coal fire in the living room. They were talking so seriously. Being curious, I needed warmed up in there. He had a paper in his hand, and he said: "Kitty, (that's what he called my mother), my brothers are all Masons, and I'd like to join." She took the paper and she said: "George Beam, select now between me or the Masons. You know they have no love for my religion." He walked over to the coal fire and threw the paper in. SAB: There was no Catholic School in Crafton at the time when we moved there. My sister, brother, and I had to go to the public school for the frrst couple of years. St. Philip's was built in nineteen sixteen, but my Dad died that year. I was only nine years old. My mother had three of us to raise. My grandfather really raised us. SMCM: Was that your father's father? SAB No, it was my mother's father. My father's people were not very close. I wouldn't say that they didn't love us. In those days, where there were two religions, they were diametrically opposed to one another. His father was wonderful. He loved us, and we loved him. His mother did not like my mother at all. There was no love lost between them. Even when my Dad died, they didn't come down to our home. In those days, the body was brought to the home, not the funeral home. His parents did not come the night before the funeral. I want to tell something very interesting. I was only nine years old. My Aunt Annie came and kept house for us while my mother was at the hospital. A call came late (couldn't determine when as there was a loud crashing sound) that my Dad was dying, so my mother and my Aunt Annie went to the hospital, but when they got there, he was already dead. They were going to bring his body home that evening about four o'clock. Father Kelty came up to the house. He went up and sat beside my mother, who was in bed, as she had been up all night. They brought Dad's body home. Father Kelty took me by one hand and put his arm around my mother. I never forgot that man. He stayed with her until she cried out completely. SMCM: Was Father Kelty pastor at St. Philip's at that time? �2 SAB: Yes, he was. Then we went to St. Philip's School. My mother had us transferred from the public school to St. Philip's. I had some marvelous teachers. I had Sister Hyacinthe Ryan, who was an absolute perfect teacher. Then there was Sister M. Adele McCullough, Sister Francis de Sales Connelly II, Sister M. Dorothy Hess, Sister Generosa, and Sister Sara Fidelis Boyle was the eighth grade teacher. I went to St. James High School. I switched from the Academic to Commercial. I didn't like the Commercial Course. I went to the first day ofthe "commercial", but it was not for me. In going home, I just stayed on the streetcar, and went all the way home to Father K elty. I told him I didn't know what I was going to do because I didn't want Commercial work. He said to me: "Well, are you sure you want to become a Sister?" I was surprised he even thought I was thinking about it. So, he sent me over to Sister M. Aquinas O'Brien, who was the Sister Servant. She took me over and talked to me. She took me to Seton Hill and I entered November first, nineteen twenty-three. I had not finished High School, but did complete it at the Academy. Sister Theodosia Murtha and Sister Anne Elizabeth Regan were also at the Academy. There were others, but I've forgotten their names. SMCM: Who entered with you? SAB: Sister Alberta Sweeney entered with me. We got the habit on the second ofFebruary. The following September, both ofus were sent to St. Benedict's to teach. I was very frightened, as I was just seventeen at the time. Sister Charlotte Judge taught the sixth or eighth grade. She came down to my classroom once or twice everyday to show me how to teach. We had on the job training. She showed me how to teach Reading and Arithmetic. SMCM: What grade was that? SAB: It was First Grade. We were Novices. Sister M. Clarissa Cunningham was there too. In those days, we walked to school. SMCM: From Seton Hill? SAB: Yes, from Seton Hill. We walked every day. The only time we didn't walk was ifit was raining too hard. SMCM: How long did it take you to walk to school? SAB: It took about fifteen minutes, except when there was snow. Being young people, we took our time in the snow, and ofcourse, we were wet when we got there. We did get a ride home from school everyday. SAB: Then I was sent to Sharpsburg. SMCM: What was the name ofthe parish? SAB: It was St. Joseph's Parish. I was there for a couple ofyears and was then transferred to the old Sacred Heart down on Center Avenue. I had first grade there. Sister Mary Felix Clarey was there. She helped in guiding me what to do in my teaching. I had some very good teachers when I first started out. They really showed you how to do it correctly the first time. SMCM: So, you stayed in primary? SAB: I was in the primary department for fourteen years. SMCM: What grade did Sr. Mary Felix have? SAB: Sr. Mary Felix had third grade, and I had frrst. We had two frrst grades, because we had �3 about one hundred children. Sister Mary Hugh Bridge had one, and I had the other. I think we had two sessions, because we had forty or fifty children at a time in each session. SMCM: Did you have that many seats in your classroom? SAB: No, we had to divide the class in half....one session from nine AM until Noon, and a second session from one PM until four PM. Sister M. Victorine Ellsworth was Principal when I fust went to Sacred Heart. Sister Rose Vincent McNulty replaced her. She was an excellent school woman. Someone usually went out visiting in the evening. This particular evening, Sr. Mary Felix asked me if I would go with her to visit a very sick child in the Highland Avenue Apartments. The Highland Avenue Apartments face Fifth Avenue and Highland at the comer. We went in there and were taken to what would seem like the basement, but it was really the first floor and was very nicely arranged. The child was the daughter of the maintenance man of the apartment complex. When we entered the apartment and saw the little girl, we realized that she was quite ill. Sister Mary Felix said to the mother: "Do you mind ifl call Father Kennedy?" The mother said: "No, but she isn't that sick." So, Sr. Mary Felix called Father and he came right away. The mother told her husband that we felt Father Kennedy should come and bless her. We had their other children, two sons in school. We asked if they had candles, which they did, but didn't have any holy water. We sent one of the boys up to the church to get holy water. The mother took her crucifix off her rosary and put it on the table. Father brought the Blessed Sacrament. He heard the little girl's confession and anointed her. I heard him say to her: "Mary, when you see God, tell him that Father Kennedy loves Him very much." Just as soon as we got in the door at the convent, the call came that the little girl had died. Next, I went to St. John the Baptist. Sister Aquinas O 'Brien was the Sister Servant. She was also Principal of the High School. I don't know who was the Principal of the Grade School. While I was there we had the nineteen thirty-six flood. SMCM: What do you remember about the flood? SAB: All I know is that I had an eye doctor appointment and Sister M. Alacoque McHale was supposed to be my companion. It was in downtown Pittsburgh, but we couldn't get there because there was too much water. By the time we got back to St. John's the electricity had been turned off, so we didn't have any heat. Then Father Wrigley opened up what they had that were like Quansett Huts for the High School. We brought in the children from around Butler Street because they were :flooded. They were all Negro. We brought them in and put blankets around them as they were without clothing. They kept them in what we called the "Ark." Sister M. Hildebert Mudler, Sister M. Honora Steiner, and a couple of other Sisters went over and cleaned the place. I think the Army brought in some cots. Some of the adults were there also. I believe she said they were there for a week. There was a fire built in the place, so it was nice and warm. Every morning a great, big sailor came to the door with a bucket of prunes. I'll never forget it. Sr. Hildebert and Sr. Honora did the cooking. I'm going to tell you, I've never found more courteous men than those Negro men. They would not let us pick up a broom. We had them there for several days. SMCM: How long did this last? SAB: I guess it was about two or three days, maybe a week. All of the schools were closed. There wasn't any heat. It was quite a while before the waters went down. They couldn't get into their homes while the water was going down, because their homes were full of dirt, etc. I �4 remember Father brought a white man in who was very ill. Father put a screen around him because he had pneumonia. Father Wrigley anointed him there and then had him sent up to St. Francis H ospital. He died. After the flood was over, the people went back to their own homes and we lost track of them. SMCM Did the flood water destroy anything in the school? SAB: No, the water didn't come up that high. The water came up to about the old Iron City Brewery. Some of the parents couldn't find their children. The Sisters helped to find them. SAB: At the end of the year, I went to Seton H ill. When the mission list was read out, I wasn't missioned. I spent a few unholy hours as they were looking for an "Angel" for the Academy, and I didn't want to be it. Finally, Sister Marie Cecily Chartener was chosen to be the Angel. So, l was relieved. I met Mother Rose Genevieve in the hall and she said: "Can't you find anywhere to go?" Go over to see Sister M. Eucharia O'Hagan and get a college schedule. I was very fortunate in that I got my full college in at Seton Hill without interruption. SMCM: How many years did it take you to do that? SAB: Well, I did have some college work. I lost almost two years of work. I had to start all over again. I was put in to science. The educational courses you had to have, I had. I graduated in nineteen forty. SMCM: Sister, where did you get the previous college work? SAB: I got it at Seton Hill and by going to Saturday classes. We had to go all the way to St. Peter's on North Side and to St. John's, Liberty Avenue. SMCM: Sister, St. Peter's North Side, Saturday School. Was that taught by our Sisters? SAB: No, the lay teachers from Seton Hill helped out. SMCM: That's the frrst time I ever heard that. SMCM: So, were your credits all from Seton Hill College? SAB: No, after I finished my High School in the Academy, and my College work at Seton Hill, I was sent to the University of Pittsburgh.· I received a Master's Degree in Science in nineteen forty-three. In nineteen fifty-three, I was sent to St. Mary's Notre Dame, where I received a Master's Degree in Theology in nineteen fifty-five. I had a National Science Fellowship to the University of Notre Dame. I was there for three summers. Then in nineteen forty, I went to St. James West End for eight years. I was in science from that time on. SMCM: What kind of science? SAB: When you started out in the parish schools, you taught all three sciences. When you. taught Chemistry and Physics, you taught the whole works. If you didn't have enough, you also taught Math. You had a full schedule. At West End, Sister Irma Sullivan was there. I remember that we taught in the day time and went out visiting in the evening after School up through Elliott and those places. Those older Sisters really went out.. ..visiting the sick, going to the poor, etc. Very rarely were they not out after school. SMCM: What did you do on these visits? SAB: Most often, she did most of the work. I was just tagging along. Sister Mary Eunice Clark used to collect things for the people we visited. Mother Maria Benedict Monahan was Principal at St. James High School. She was an excellent school woman and was very fair. �5 SAB: After my stay in the West End, I was sent to St. Luke's in Carnegie. SMCM: Was this in the High School? SAB: Yes, my teaching now was all in the High School. While at St. Luke's, Sister Rosalie O'Hara, Sister Mary Reginald Farrell, and I went to Oakdale every Saturday to teach Sunday School. We caught the eight o'clock bus on Main Street and taught until two o'clock. Every Sunday, Sister M. Joanna Gleason and Sister Mary Helen Meyer went to Morganza. SMCM: Where did you teach when you went to Oakdale? SAB: It was in the church. I believe the name of it was St. Patrick's. Sister Reginald Farrell took care of the First Communion Class. I had children from third, fourth, and fifth grade. Then Sr. Rosalie O'Hara taught the older children. There were a couple of young women who came to our Community from the class Sr. Rosalie taught. SMCM: Do you remember who they are? SAB: [Unintelligible] After St. Luke's, I was transferred to Sacred Heart in East Liberty. SMCM: Was this your second time back at Sacred Heart? SAB: Yes, this time it was to be in the High School. Sister Mary Helen Meyer and I had Biology. Sister Francina Skergan taught the Physics. Sister Mary Helen and Sister Mary Edmund Speer taught the Chemistry. SMCM: What year was it when you went back to Sacred Heart? SAB: I think it was nineteen fifty-four. SMCM: Were the Sisters living on top of the school at that time? SAB: Yes, we were living there. It was called a Penthouse. There were fifty Sisters there. SMCM: Who was the Sister Servant? SAB: Sr. Rose Vincent McNulty was the Sister Servant. Sister Marion McKelvy (formerly Sr. Marie Magdalene) was Principal of the High School, and Sister Mary Donald Cusick was Principal of the Grade School. Both of the schools were quite large. Of course, there were just girls in the High School. SAB: That brings us up to when I was transferred from Sacred Heart to Greensburg Central. That was in nineteen seventy. I have been here ever since. SMCM: Sister, is your specialty in science, mostly biology? SAB: Well, yes, but I have taught all three sciences. I taught them until I came to Greensburg Central. I also taught Religion until I came here. Sr. Alexine OH 31-1 Tape I Side 2 Sister, would you tell us something about your first year in the Community? SAB: I entered on November first. Sr. Alberta Sweeney entered with me. We received the habit on February second. Then the following September, we were given the black cap.We taught at St. Benedict's as novices. In the evening, we had classes. �6 Sister Marita Murphy was teaching us singing. It was a hot day. There were no screens on the windows. The next classroom was across from the novitiate, which is now the present day Community Room at Seton Hill. The June bugs were getting in. The Sister on the end caught the June bugs and passed them along, and we threw them out in the hall. Then we started giggling. Sister Marita reported us to Mother Mary Francis who was the Mistress then. The next morning, Mother Mary Francis called everybody, even we who were going to St. Benedict's. She asked every person down the line what they were doing. We were perfectly alright until the German Sisters began to talk in their broken English. The giggling began. Mother Mary Francis put the whole novitiate in silence for a full day. She asked Mother Rose Genevieve to give the other Sisters recreation during the noon and evening meals. The rest ofus had to sit in silence. So we called it "The June Bug Retreat!" SMCM: Sister, What did the German Sisters do? SAB: They had classes for them. Sister Teresa Clare taught them English, Sr. Mary Felix taught them how to read. Otherwise, they worked like we did...in the kitchen, the scullery. They didn't do the hallways. We had to do all ofthem. We also worked in the Infirmary. The Infirmary was the fourth floor ofSt. Joseph's Hall. Sister Margretta Bernlohr, one ofthe German Sisters, worked in the Infirmary. SMCM: What was your charge as a Novice? SAB: Mostly, I worked down in the Mens' Dining Room. SMCM: Where was their Dining Room? SAB: It was part ofthe kitchen, which was located on the first floor ofthe Administration Building. I also had the Priests' Dining Room for a while. Sister Mary Leonard Bums was in charge. SMCM: Who were the priests at that time? SAB: Father Sullivan was there when I first went there. After he died, Father Reeves came. Dr. Reeves (Father) was President ofthe College while I was there. SMCM: Sister, can you tell me who the Mother Superior and Council were when you entered? SAB: When I first entered, Mother Mary Raymond Creed was the Mother Superior, but I entered in November and she died the following March. The Council members were: Sister M. Victorine Ellsworth, Sister Jane Elizabeth Smith, and Sister Rose Vincent McNulty, who was the Assistant Mother. SMCM: Do you remember any ofthe senior Sisters who were at Seton Hill during your Novitiate? SAB: I remember the old nurse, Sister M. Justina Stevens. You didn't have to read your mail, because she always read your cards for you. Ifshe met you in the hall, and you had received a card, she would say: "You received a card, and they want you to know this......!" Sisters M. Liguori and Mary Agnes Gillespie were there. Sister Francis Joseph Malloy was there too. She was also with me at St. James in the West End. �7 SMCM: Who was the Infirmarian at that time? SAB: Sister Grace Barr was in charge ofthe Infirmary. She was the only one. Ofcourse, Sister Alberta Sweeney had full charge ofSister Marion Stephen, who required constant care as she was so crippled. Sister M. Estelle Hensler was the senior Novice. SMCM: Sister, where did you live as a Novice? SAB: We were on the Fourth Floor ofthe Administration Building. First, we were on the Sixth Floor, but there was a problem with the water. It would freeze up. SMCM: Did you serve in the Dining Room? SAB: The Novices always served the entire year. The older Sisters were always interested in you. They would ask you, who you were, where you were from, etc. You never meet the young Sisters now. You never see them. In fact, I don't even know ifthey are Sisters or not when I do meet them. At that time, you knew the Community was one! We had lots offun. We used to go sled riding down the main road. We borrowed the sleds which were used by the girls in the Academy. SMCM: Were there any other Sisters in the Novitiate who had to finish their High School in the Academy? SAB: There was another Sister, but I forget who it was. SMCM: What did you do for recreation besides sled riding? SAB: We had plays, I guess you would call them dumb, little things. We enjoyed each other....did lots oflaughing. In the summer, we were near the Grotto and we could use the whole lot to play ball or whatever. We had apple peeling sessions which were enjoyable. We peeled vegetables for the next day. SMCM: What did they do with the apples? SAB: Sister Francis Joseph Malloy made applesauce. Sister had a very large vat. We took our turns stirring it. We also picked strawberries which were down over the hill where Havey Hall now stands. When I first entered, there was a lake down by the road. It had boats on. The Sisters used to go out to catch frogs for the biology lab. You only went at night, because you used a flashlight to bring them out. When we went home in the summers we taught Sunday School. Sister Alberta. Sister Rose Marie Schneider, I and there was a fourth person left Seton Hill at six o'clock in the morning on Sundays. We went out to Avonmore for Mass, taught Sunday School at Avonmore, had a little lunch there, broke up, and two went to Tintown, two to Saltzburg, and someone went to Kiski. When I was at the college, we went out every Saturday. Sisters M. Maurice and Mary Thaddeus McManama, Sister Helen Cecilia Dwyer and I went over to West Newton. We broke up in the afternoon and went to a tiny place called Reduction. SMCM: How did you travel to these places? SAB: The Sisters didn't drive then, so someone from the parish or sometimes the priests would come for us and bring us home. One time a man from West Newton was transporting us. When we were returning home, another car forced us off the road. The car rolled over. We had to crawl out the top ofthe car. SMCM: Was anyone hurt? SAB: No, the driver was able then to get the car righted. �8 SMCM: Sister, were you ever involved in teaching any ofour Sisters in the Extension Courses which we had? SAB: Yes, I taught in the Summer Sessions for about twenty-two years at Seton Hill. It was an eight week course for some ofour Sisters. The courses ran from eight o'clock in the morning until one o'clock in the afternoon. When I was at Sacred Heart, I believe it was Sister Brigid Marie Grantley and I went to the Hill District to teach the Negro children at the House ofMary a couple ofevenings a week. Sister Marcella Mary Burgunder came for us. We left the dinner table in order to begin tutoring the children at six PM for about two hours. I taught them Chemistry, and Sr. Brigid Marie taught them English. SMCM: Who would you say was influential in your becoming a Sister ofCharity? SAB: I think there were two things. Remember, I told you the story ofFather Kelty being with me when my father died. For me, the sun rose and set on my father. I believe the association I had with Father Kelty, and just being around the Sisters greatly influenced me to become a Sister ofCharity. SMCM: Would you like to make any comments on the changes in the Community? SAB: I think we needed to change. I'm not so sure that the drastic change we have gone through was necessary. I can't go along with Sisters saying we have a lack ofvocations because ofthe times. The Felicians, The Daughters of St. Paul are getting them by the hundreds. Something is missing! I don't know what it is. SMCM: How have you been able to adjust to our new prayers? SAB: I'm glad we changed to the Office, because it is the prayer ofthe Church. Ifthe Church tells me to do something, I will do it, but I cannot take everyone's innovations. Some people decide we should do this or that. I can't swallow that. When the Church tells you to do something, do it, but not overdo it. I'm just wondering ifwe are not getting vocations because we are not religious enough. We have to be different, and I don't think we are too different from the secular teachers we're working with! [Unintelligible] SAB: I retired from the actual classroom teaching at Geensburg Catholic in nineteen eighty-six. The student body gave me a marvelous send off. They were having Honors Day, the day the students get their awards. We don't give them on Graduation Night because it takes too long. SAB: I remember on Graduation Night, Sister M. Germaine Helwig was beside me and when the Procession came in, behind Father Booklighter, the Ministers at the Altar, Sr. Donna Marie Lyden, Principal, etc., there was Bishop Connare. I said to Sr. Germaine: "What is he doing here?" She said: "I really don't know?" Then she said: "They're talking about you. Get up there!" I walked up. I never heard such an ovation in all my life. Everyone stood up and clapped. Every class gave me something. I ended up with eight hundred dollars. The lay faculty gave me a check for sixty-five dollars and my own department had a dinner for me out at Mountain View Inn, and they gave me about sixty dollars. Bishop Connare gave a nice talk. I said to him: "Well, I started my teaching in the Greensburg �9 Diocese and am ending it in the Greensburg Diocese." He said: "Sister, you started in the Greensburg Diocese, but you're not ending it now." Right now, I have a research group of about fifteen youngsters. I wanted to get them out of the text book into doing the actual work. I have to take them at their own time...on their study periods, etc. The first part of the course I taught them how to use all the apparatus....machines, spectroscope, how to take proper measurements, etc. Now this semester, they are doing their own research because they know how to use everything. Sister Ann lnfanger supplies them with flies. SMCM: Does that take your whole day? SAB: Yes, it takes my entire day. They're doing their research now. I'm teaching them the proper way to record and be sure that things are left in order for the next person. I'm having them write a Research Paper as it should be written by a true Research S cientist. They must be turned in to me the first week in May. SMCM: Do you enjoy doing this kind of work? SAB: Yes, I do and they get a half of a credit for it. That's my day. Tape II Side I SMCM: This is a continuation of an interview being conducted as part of the Oral History Program of the Sisters of Charity of Seton Hill. The interviewee is Sister Alexine Beam. The interview is being conducted by Sister Marie Corona Miller at the Greensburg Faculty House. The date isJanuary twenty-ninth, nineteen eighty-S even. Good afternoon, S ister. We're at it again. I think we're going to add some footnotes about the works that you have done in the line of science and the recognition that has been given to you as a Teacher of the S ciences. Would you like to share some of those with us? SAB: The first was a Teacher's Certification from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. That was for the outstanding Science Teacher of the state. The second was from the Biology Teacher's Association Award.Then I had the H.J. Heinz Company,Jones and Laughlin Steel, The Master Brewers, The Medical Society, The Veterans of Foreign Wars, The United States Air Force, and The Analytic Chemists S ociety. I also had some publications. They were large group discussions, which were published in "TheJournal of Catholic Education," and "The Pennsylvania Catholic EducationalJournal." There were publications on the teaching of Biology in "The Catholic Educator." I have made or published over eight hundred transparencies in Biology. SMCM: Sister, what is on these transparencies? SAB: They cover the entire biology course. There are drawings, graphs, diagrams, various things, etc. The public schools in Pittsburgh use these transparencies. SMCM: Sister, in order to get these awards, what did you have to do? SAB: The biology teachers in the state had to submit their entire academic background, their years of teaching, what you taught, and people came and observed your teaching. They looked at all of your work.... .like the transparencies. They went all through them. �10 SMCM: What about the award from the United States Air Force? How.did that come about? SAB: Pretty much the same way. The Veterans of Foreign Wars first had a meeting. I think Sister Mary Eudes Clougherty came to the meeting also. They gave the award to the outstanding teacher. They sent you a list of questions to answer. You had to have people vouch for you....like I had the Superintendent of Schools. Sister Marion McKelvy wrote on my behalf. SMCM: Was science your choice, or were you selected for it? SAB: I was selected for it. In those days, you didn't choose what you were going to teach. SMCM: Do you intend to continue your work at Greensburg Central teaching research as long as you can? SAB: Yes, I would like to do that. I think it's better to keep going and perhaps be of some use to somebody. SMCM: Is there anything else you would like to tell us? SAB: No, I don't think so. This group I have now are all Research Scientists. One is up in Buffalo, New York doing cancer research. She's a graduate of Seton Hill, by the way. I have others doing research in other places. SMCM: Sister, thank you for giving me your time and so much wonderful, valuable information. The Community is grateful. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Sisters of Charity of Seton Hill Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview Sister Marie Corona Miller Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Sister Alexine Beam Location The location of the interview Greensburg F Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Beam, Sister Alexine Oral History Subject The topic of the resource Sr. Alexine Beam Description An account of the resource An oral history of Sister M. Alexine Beam, a Sister of Charity of Seton Hill from 1923 until 1999. The interview was conducted by Sister Marie Corona Miller on January 29, 1987. Sister M. Alexine Beam - born Margaret Beam on February 20, 1907 - entered the Sisters of Charity of Seton Hill in November of 1923. She received a bachelor's degree in science from Seton Hill College in 1940, a master's degree in science from the University of Pittsburgh in 1943, and a master's degree in theology from Saint Mary's College in 1955. She taught science in Pittsburgh and Greensburg, serving at - among other locations - Saint James High School, Sacred Heart High School, and Greensburg Central Catholic. Some of her educational transparencies were bought and published by Holt, Rinehart and Winston, Inc. She died on November 6, 1999. S.C. (1907-1999). Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Sr. Alexine Beam Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Sisters of Charity of Seton Hill Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1987 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Archives of the Sisters of Charity of Seton Hill Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource All rights belong to the Sisters of Charity of Seton Hill, Greensburg, Pennsylvania. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Audio cassette tape Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Oral history Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context OH-31 Education Sisters of Charity of Seton Hill https://scfederationarchives.org/files/original/293e273519b1543bd4d545901050a4be.jpg 71de0b4d8487afd78c770750158ee8a7 https://scfederationarchives.org/files/original/797a734f1ea4ba18558c84436f98fda6.pdf 9f5063828bbc036c5444e3bb108cb255 PDF Text Text Fear not I am with you; Isaiah 5:3 My life in this Congregation has been a long and rewarding experience and I thank God for the Spiritual Journey with my Sisters and all the people of God in my life. As I recall my thirty-eight years as a professed Sister of Charity of Nazareth I can only thank God for the wonders God has done for me and through me. God was the centre of my life. I have touched a good number of people’s lives in my career as a teacher and principal in various schools. Living in multicultural communities has been a blessing as well as a challenge to know various cultures and appreciate them. The formation directors, junior directors and the provincials have helped me to grow to become the person I am today. I, Sister Blanche Correia, come from a very devout family. My father’s name was Mr. Francis Manuel Correia and my mother’s name was Luzan Francis Correia. We were nine children: three brothers and six sisters. My father worked for Air India and my mother was a house wife. My parents had only primary level education. My mother was a very religious woman. On certain days, Sunday and Wednesday, Mass was compulsory. We were expected to say the rosary daily. If we failed to do so, we did not get our supper. My father died when I was eight years old and my mother died when I was sixteen years old. Both of our parents worked hard till their death to take care of all of us. They made sure that we were �all given a proper education by which we would be able to stand on our own feet. I completed my Matriculation and Diploma in Education (D. Ed.) and taught two years in Mumbai Church School before entering the Sister of Charity of Nazareth. My call to religious life came from my mother, priests in the parish, attending vocation camps, convent education, assisting nuns in the church on Saturdays and Sundays, etc. Going to North India to join the Nazareth Sisters was a big risk as I was the first one from Vasai to join them. I did not receive any cooperation from my family except my brother-in-law, Mr. Raphael Lopes. Most of my education was in Church-run schools and college except Class I to IV which was in government school. When it came time to choose a Congregation, I attended vocation camp and met two SCNs Teresita Theruvankunnel and Mary Scaria Menonparampil at Gorai, Mumbai. They both came wearing sari, not habits. The fact that the Sisters wore the sari attracted me to join this order. I had no idea where Bihar was and my family objected to my going. They were happy with my decision to join the convent but wished I would choose one that was not so far away as Bihar. Initially I struggled a lot with homesickness but the presence of my candidate director Sister Olive Pinto, along with Sisters Shalini D’Souza and Margaret Rodericks I was able to handle �my homesickness. My eldest sister and her husband’s visit to Mokama changed the attitude of my family. They were very happy with the Sisters’ hospitality and the friendly atmosphere in the convent. Yes, I kept on missing my own culture, language, food habits -especially fish, which we used to have daily at home - family get-togethers every Sunday and many other family functions. Novitiate life was not much fun with so many rules and regulations. However, the disciplined and enthusiastic Novice Mistress, Sister Shalini, made the novitiate life joyful. I was happy with my group. We were four in our group and one left as a postulant so we were only three to make first vows. For the first vows, several of my family members visited Mokama and joined the celebration. My first mission was in Golmuri, Jamshedpurat. Sisters Teresa Madassery, Mary Julianna Tuti (deceased) and Sarala Anithottathil were my companions in the community. Sister Sarala and I were assigned to Rahargoda School and Sisters Teresa and Juliana worked for Catholic Relief Services (CRS). I was committed and enthusiastic about my mission. After the first mission in Rahargora, SCNs were asked to take up Gyan Deep Vidylaya, Birsanagar. I was appointed as the first SCN headmistress there. The then provincial, Sister Margaret Rodericks, asked me to learn cycling. I did struggle and learn. I used to go to Birsanagar daily on a cycle along with the other SCN Premila Parackattu. Staying with Sisters �Teresa and Juliana Tuti was a joyful experience. I learnt a lot from them. Here I also completed my IA, (Intermediate studies) from Ranchi University as a private student. I was appointed to Vasai, my own hometown, to work with the youth there. I was very energetic and enthusiastic about working with the youth and I gained a lot of confidence in this ministry. At that time, I was invited to go for final vow preparation. After six months of spiritual preparation, I said, ‘YES’ to God on May 4, 1985, and committed myself into the service of God’s people. It was a very joyful and memorable day for me and for my family. Graduating from Mumbai’s prestigious St. Xavier’s College in sociology was a proud moment for me. I was then sent to Bihar, to a small village called Hilsa, Nalanda District for another mission. As the Principal of Christ Jyoti School Hilsa, I totally dedicated myself to this mission. Nazareth Pre-School Gaya, gave me a lot of joy and satisfaction. Visiting and counselling the women who were in a jail was another painful experience. It was a God-given privilege for me to have that sacred experience in Gaya Central Jail. Going back to Birsanagar where I was a pioneer to take the responsibility of Gyan Deep High School was a moment of pride. Here I learnt to drive the scooter. God gave me an opportunity to reach out to the rich and invite them to serve the poor as St. Vincent did. The school flourished and many �students were admitted in the school. These students were mainly the domestic workers’ children. I have many sweet memories of this mission. Recognizing my talents, the Provincial Leadership Team (PLT) and Central Leadership Team (CLT) of that time invited me to go for further studies at Spalding University in Kentucky in the United States. I accepted the invitation and completed my Master of Education in School Administration. I considered myself fortunate as I walked on the holy ground where our co-founder, Mother Catherine Spalding, and many other great holy women walked. With gratitude and joy, I cherish those years of mine spent in Nazareth, Kentucky. I am grateful to the PLT and CLT who gave me this opportunity to educate myself in School Administration. My special thanks and gratitude goes to Sisters Mary Serra Goethals and Rose Howard who assisted and accommodated me in their home and community. As they were both educationists and principals in the schools, I profited a lot intellectually. They were my walking encyclopaedias. I was happy to be back in India in December 2007. I was assigned as the Principal of Nazareth Convent High School, Vasai beginning June 1​st​ 2008. The responsibility was great, especially working with my own people. I took up the challenge and continued my service in the field of education to the people of Vasai. As per the rule in the Maharasthra education department, I officially retired on the 1​st​ of June �2014 and my service was extended up to September 30, 2014. I am grateful to God for accompanying me all those years. This was a significant assignment and I struggled to swim through. I knew there were some personalities who did not like my way of functioning. So they instigated people against me. Yes, the management wholeheartedly supported me to clear the mess in the administration. This mission has groomed and grilled me to take up any challenges in life and fight for the truth. I was appointed as the Principal of Nazareth School from the 1​st​ of January 2015, in Banakal, affiliated with CISCE New Delhi (Council for Indian School Certificate Examinations). I accepted it joyfully as CISCE accepted my appointment. To date I am giving my service to the people of this Malnad area. I am happy here except for my health. Due to allergy in the air, heavy rain almost four to five months and uneven land and staircases has disturbed my health. I am confident God will continue to guide me in my journey. Almost twenty-eight years in school administration has kept my mind alert. I need to update myself constantly and educate myself with what is happening in the world, India etc. Being with the students has kept me very young and energetic. I lost my parents before I joined the SCNs and I lost two brothers and a sister after I joined. I consider it a huge loss in �my life. I have not yet recovered from the death of my eldest sister, who was like a mother to me. Over the years, there have been many ups and downs, misunderstandings, accusations, condemnations, and criticisms but I took it as a part of my mission. In success and failures I have experienced God at my side. God has protected me, defended me, kept me safe under His wings. Once I was caught up in a big flood and God saved me. I was returning from my college and got down at Mumbai Central station to go to the hostel. I just could not proceed due to heavy rain. The water was above my waist, I could not go further. Just then a gentleman appeared and held my hand and took me to a safe place. Surgeries of hysterectomy and spine brought me closer to God. I look forward to the future that God may continue to use me for the service of God’s people. I draw strength and nourishment through devotion to the Blessed Sacrament and daily Eucharist. My answer to any young women would be: it is worth dedicating our life for the Kingdom of God, to spread the Good News. I Can Sing Mercies of the Lord Forever I will Sing ... � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Sisters of Charity of Nazareth Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview Unknown Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Blanche Correia, SCN Location The location of the interview United States Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Blanche Correia, SCN Oral History Subject The topic of the resource Correia, Blanche, SCN; Sisters of Charity of Nazareth Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource SCN Archival Center Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived SCN Archival Center Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 7/9/1905 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Permission for any type of publication of archival materials, including text, photographs, video, or audio must be secured from the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth Archival Center before publication. Contact archives staff for appropriate forms and contact information. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF Language A language of the resource English Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context MMC-BlancheCorreia Sisters of Charity of Nazareth https://scfederationarchives.org/files/original/7bde5a59bf81f01299af512f2f3f2e5f.jpg 206fd96999ba91e0fe2d07a27e47a7bf https://scfederationarchives.org/files/original/6a9c13d9f77a8a328db2f216ddb86f6a.mp3 e0469ef54a0112ce7ac93044d278623e https://scfederationarchives.org/files/original/8f9cc42c6d84cc61646583a78618ef27.pdf 98a6c75b1b4772540b3fcd9d0ee1d753 PDF Text Text 1 ORAL HISTORY OF SR. HELEN BREWER INTERVIEWED BY SISTER CECILE MATUSHEK, D.C. RECORDED JULY 2019 My name is Sister Helen Brewer. I’m a Daughter of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul. I was born in Perryville, Missouri on November 24, 1934, and I was baptized the following Sunday on December 2, 1934 at the Church of the Assumption. My parents are Stella Ann Bass Brewer and Edward Louis Brewer, and I’m the fifth of seven children. Three of my siblings – Louis, Maura, and Dorothy – are deceased. The other three are Victoria, Dennis, and Albert. The four of us are able to visit regularly as they live relatively close to where I presently live in Missouri. I have 23 nieces and nephews. The Daughters of Charity and the Vincentian priests have always been a part of my life. The church of the Assumption was also known as St. Mary’s of the Barrens. My parish church was also the chapel of the Vincentian seminarians studying for the priesthood. Long before I was born, the seminarians built a grotto honoring Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception. The Vincentians established near that time the Association of the Miraculous Medal. The Daughters of Charity arrived in Perryville in 1907. Actually, the first establishment of the Vincentians was in Perryville in the St. Louis Archdiocese in 1818. So, they were there many years, and then the Daughters came in 1907 and established the St. Vincent’s School. They taught there for 95 years before it was necessary to leave because of assignments. I was taught by the Daughters of Charity the 12 years of my grade and high school education. The church, and the grotto, and the Shrine, and the Seminary, and the parish Catholic school are all a part of my education and formation. When I think about those times of my youth, my growing up, they were special times that my family was together and those were – like the Christmas Novena, and the Stations of the Cross, and the triduum before Easter, and the May procession and the Corpus Christi procession. We went as a family. And of course the Seminary picnic. You had to go to the Seminary picnic. [laughter] Of course. I love the Seminary picnic. Me too I loved to be around the Daughters of Charity, helping them around the school. Clapping the erasers was an important thing to do, and cleaning the chalkboard, and decorating the bulletin boards. Several of the girls in my class when we were about the third and fourth grade, we would race up the sidewalk to the sisters’ house as they came back from lunch, because we had to be the first one to be able to grab sister’s hand and hold her hand back to the school. Sisters Regina [Henley] and Aurea [Ayler] and Blanche [O’Malley] and Clotilda [Landry], and Helena [O’Shea] and Frances Mary [Rutt] and Frances [Proffitt] were all sisters that I remember closely. They were a special part of my life. And they made a part of the decision that I made to be a Daughter of Charity. Principally because they seemed happy, and they enjoyed what they were doing. One of my significant memories of the possibility of becoming a Daughter took place when I was completing my junior year in high school. I had asked one of the priests of the seminary if they would �2 provide a reference for me to take into St. Mary’s Hospital in St. Louis. I was applying for a summer position between my junior and senior year to serve as a nurses’ aide. He agreed, but as I was turning to leave, he called out to me and said, “Don’t let them get you.” I really stopped in my tracks because it was the first time I think that I realized that I should seriously consider what I was going to do after high school. He was talking not about the Daughters, but more about the Franciscan Sisters of Mary, who operated the hospital in St. Louis to which I was trying to be a nurses’ aide. It really was the first of my thoughts with regard to becoming a Daughter of Charity. When I remember some of my childhood memories of growing up, in addition to the church and school activities and living with six brothers and sisters, one of the major memories of my life has to do with the Second World War. I remember coming home from seeing an afternoon movie and finding my parents concerned about what they were listening to on the radio, learning that what was happening was the destruction of Pearl Harbor, and the President of United States was declaring war. The Second World War was part of my growing up. I was seven years old when the war started. Both of my older brothers served in the war in the Navy. One brother was in the Atlantic, and the other was in the Pacific. My mother used to help with the American Red Cross, and my father, as a member of the American Legion, used to assist families when their loved ones did not come home. One of my most vivid memories at the end of the war was going to church and thanking God with all of the rest of the parishioners and the townspeople. It was a very moving moment. When I think about my vocation, I have to think about it in terms of my classmates in high school. It wasn’t unusual for more than one classmate to join a religious order of priests or sisters, and in my particular class, there were three of us who joined the Daughters of Charity this year – this is one graduating class. One of our classmates joined the School Sisters of Notre Dame, and one of the boys went into the seminary toward the priesthood. I joined the Daughters of Charity, and I entered postulatum on June 16th, 1952, and I served my period of postulatum, or preparation to become a Daughter, at St. Philomena’s in St. Louis, which was a daycare center and a social service center in midtown St. Louis. After a period of I think about three or four or five months, I went to Marillac Seminary in St. Louis, and on November 25, 1952, a day after my 18th birthday, I became a member of the Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul. Following that time or that year in the seminary, I was given the habit of the Daughters of Charity on the Feast of the Miraculous Medal in November 27, 1953. In that time in our history, the sisters did not just first get a college degree and then you were sent on mission. Actually, you were sent on mission while you were studying and working for your college degree whether that would be in summer school as you came back from one year to the other or evening classes and Saturday classes at colleges where you were. I want to talk a little bit about my missions and my ministries. I’ve divided my many missions and ministries into several time periods. First, what my ministry was, and then to share some of the thoughts I had at several of those ministries. The first 10-15 years of my being a Daughters of Charity, I spent as a teacher at the elementary school level. I was first assigned to Mobile, Alabama; and then I was at Salt Lake City, Utah; and then back to St. Louis. Part of coming back to St. Louis was to finish my Bachelor’s degree. �3 The second 10 to 15 years I spent as a teacher at the elementary school level and secondary level at the Labouré High School teacher and Ritter High School principal and vice principal. And there I was in San Francisco, and then Dallas, and again back into St. Louis. The third 10-15 years, 1976-1988 I served as the Director of Religious Education and pastoral ministry programs and diocesan level Director of Religious Education and the director of Renew. I’ll talk about those things later. I was located in Springfield, Missouri, and I was located in West Plains, and Willow Springs, and White Church, and Thayer in Southern Missouri. The next 10 years from the late 80s through 1998 were a different kind of ministry. It was a 10 year period. It felt like a longer period than that. I was a docent in Emmitsburg, and then I served as a Director of Religious Education in a parish in St. Charles, Missouri. The next thing that I did in that same period of time was I was assigned to be vice president of Mission Integration at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Ft. Worth, and then, following that, I served in the mission leadership position at our National Health System in St. Louis and then a ministry councilor for the Daughters of Charity from 1995-98 here in St. Louis. That takes care probably of about the first 40 years of my ministry from a teacher to a principal to a director to a leadership position. When you were on the Council, was that the days when we were health, ministry, and social work [positions]? Mm-hmm. And so you were the health...? No, no, no, I was education. Education on the Council! Ok. Actually, when I looked at it, it looked like—It just says “Ministry.” In my head... but it was in education. I wasn’t in the healthcare. I don’t know if that’s how we were. That’s what I was trying to remember myself. At St. Joseph’s, what was interesting was that was not one of our hospitals to begin with I recall. It was the St... I think it they were St. Joseph’s Sisters, because you and I would get together... Yeah, St. Joseph’s in... Ft. Worth. In Ft. Worth was a hospital of the Sisters of Incarnate Word of San Antonio. We purchased it from them. They had had it for almost 100 years, and then they were not able to continue it. So those were challenges I guess? It was a challenging time for sure. I’d like to just take a couple of experiences to share some thoughts that I had. One of them was my first mission in Mobile, Alabama. It was a period of the time in which schools and parishes and everything at �4 life was to be integrated. It was a period of integration in the 1950s. Several of my experiences—One had to do with the procession that was held annually in the Diocese of Mobile at Corpus Christi time in which the celebration was to take the Blessed Sacrament through the city of Mobile and bring it to the center of downtown Mobile. In that particular year, the schools were to be lined up according to the year in which they were founded. In that particular year, a school with black boys and girls, with black children, was placed in front of St. Vincent’s School of Mobile, the Daughters’ school. My experience was that at one point, as the procession was starting, when the families found out that the black children were walking in front of the white children, the parents came and removed their children from the procession. Took them out. It was a shocking thought for—I was twenty-one years old. It’s shocking still isn’t it. Right, shocking still. I also remember times when I would see women who I knew were waitresses or housekeepers walking instead of riding the bus, and also to know that, in the church, in St. Vincent’s church, the people who were black sat in the last pews, and there was a rope that was hooked to the wall and the pew, which was an indicator that if you were not white, that you should not go beyond that rope in church in church in St. Vincent’s Church in Mobile, Alabama. Was that the time of the bus boycott as well and the boycott as well of the bank industry? Yes, it was the time of the bus boycott as well. That’s why all of those people were walking toward their work because they didn’t... They were not going to ride those busses at that point. When I was at San Francisco at the girls’ high school... This was the period of time in history when Haight-Ashbury was the most dominant part of what was happening in the drug scene, and we would have some of our high school girls disappear in the maze of the Haight-Ashbury district. Cathedral High School was located not too far from the Haight-Ashbury district. One of the most memorable moments for me was when one of the high school girls in class just burst out in tears and she said “Why do they have to keep killing our leaders?” She was referring to Dr. Martin Luther King and the Kennedy assassination as well. You meant Bobby? Bobby. Yeah. All of that was occurring in similar time when I was missioned in the San Francisco Cathedral High School for Girls. Another one of the experiences that I wanted to share was when I was in Springfield, Missouri working with the diocesan religious education programs as well as working with the Renew program. This was a time following the Second Vatican Council in which the expansion of the opportunity for people to participate more actively in the life of the Church was taking place. One of the memories has to do with the enthusiasm that occurred surrounding the opportunity when families could more actively participate in activities of the church but also in the development of their own spirituality through the participation of Renew. Renew was the name that was given to a small group family-centered discussion, school centered and family-centered opportunities to learn more about sacred scripture, learn more about their faith. And that was part of the Second Vatican Council’s expansion of activities for the Church to be more fully among the people And that was very new for the Church at that time wasn’t it? �5 It was. You were there. Right. In the midst of it. Right in the middle of it. Trying to spread that message of the active participation of people in the Church. When I was in Austin, Texas-- Mobile; San Francisco; Springfield, Missouri; Austin, Texas—I arrived in Austin at the time that the federal government was initiating the Children’s Health Insurance Program [CHIP]. I got into it right at the very beginning because, when I first went to Austin I was serving as an advocate and a person lobbying for issues surrounding the state capital, the issues in the state of Texas. Part of that energy that I had at the time was my participation in the development and the acceptance of the CHIP program for the state of Texas and also distinguish the eligibility programs of whether the child was eligible for Medicaid or whether they were eligible for the CHIP program. So I did some lobbying, and I actively engaged with some of our Senators and Representatives at the time. It was a great experience. Those were big days for that. Yes they were. They were the big days. I spent probably the last 20 years—a little less than 20 years of my ministry, I was in Austin, Texas. During that time, the expansion of health care services in the Central Texas area, and I was really blessed to be a part of that expansion, part of that growth in Central Texas. I served as a member of the board, and also as chair of the board for some time. It was a big lesson for me. Was that the time that we took over the city hospital in Austin, when we acquired that as well? Which was mammoth. Yes, it was. The City/County Hospital – Brackenridge Hospital – was a major, wonderful tradition, but unable to sustain the cost of maintaining the City/County hospital. So Ascension and Seton Hospital-Ascension took over and developed a relationship with the City/County hospital. It was very very difficult because it entailed the birth and... All of the above. All of the above areas abortion and birth control that would have been possible had it been a public hospital, but now it was coming under a Catholic hospital system. It had to do with the directives for health care... The big directives. We were dealing with Rome, and we were dealing with the Catholic Dioceses of the United States. So yes, Brackenridge was a big party. And Bishop [John E.] McCarthy was so good. Yes, he was. Bishop McCarthy just recently died, and he was a great help too. In order to serve the poor. And it’s still going on I believe. �6 Yes, it is. With a new one, a whole new hospital. Yes, it is. Children’s. Yes it is. That’s great. When I look back... When I was preparing for this, I was 67 years of service as a Daughter of Charity, and I look back at it, and it’s been an honor, it’s been a privilege, and I see it with gratitude and with thanksgiving for having had numerous opportunities to serve. Actually, I forgot a couple. As I concluded my ministry in Austin, I also had the opportunity to serve in Gould, Arkansas; and also in El Paso, Texas; and in Nashville, Tennessee, either as a board chair of the health ministries there or as a committee member in St. Thomas Health in Nashville. And I also had two other areas, including ministries, were in Nashville and in Perryville. Going back to Perryville, I served on the board of the Association of the Miraculous Medal for a period of time. That was full circle from your very beginning? Yes, it was full circle from the very beginning. I look back at my life and I see special opportunities over and over again of many times when I was encouraged to grow both spiritually, physically, and emotionally. I was encouraged to develop those qualities that would bring me closer to the people and closer to God, and when I was looking at the material and answering the questions and working through those, I came to the realization that I had not said about my sister companions, the sisters that I lived with. When I looked back... There’s a bunch of them. I lived in community all of those—My sisters in community, I wouldn’t have been able to do what I did if I didn’t live in community with the companions—There’s a song “Companions on my Journey,”and definitely I recall those many missions that I had, included in those mission is my relationship with all the sisters. So, I lived with them, I worked with them, I ministered with them, I agreed with them, I disagreed with them, I grew beside them, and I am grateful for all those who were part of my life. Sister Helen, you’ve shared a lot about how you were really present for a lot of the big major moments both in our country with the Civil Rights and with the assassinations and then also with the church with the Vatican Council. I wondered if you’d take a couple minutes if you would to reflect on life now, here, where our biggest thing is reading the paper or watching the news. How do you feel about living here [The Sarah Community in Bridgeton, MO]? It’s not all Daughters. We live with other communities. We live with laypeople. You’re experiences would lead you this direction I would think, but, do you have any thoughts on the life now as your ministry here? First of all, I’m very happy to be here. Yes, me too. I’m very happy to be living here. I find it very welcoming place. I often tell people that it feels very much at home. I feel good about being here. People are not nosy. They’re very helpful if you need help, but they’re not nosy. So you have the opportunity to be in your apartment and be in the chapel �7 and have the opportunity for Mass. It’s a great blessing. It’s a great blessing. I’m trying to learn how to role. I’m trying to learn how it is that this is my life now. However long God gives me, for the rest of my life, the opportunity to not have such a rigid schedule or so many opportunities that I can’t just sit back and say, “Well, maybe I can do that tomorrow. Or maybe I can do that the next day.” I’m very grateful to be here. You talk about there are widows and widowers, there are couples, there are sisters of various congregations. All of us live in a sense in community, but at the same time, there’s a privacy and there’s a community that comes together very easily. Very easily. I really do love it here. Me too. It’s great. And we have time for prayer. Oh, yes. We were so busy in our apostolic life. Not that we’re not apostolic. Yes, very much. Well thank you so much. You’re welcome. That was wonderful. I learned a lot from you myself. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Daughters of Charity, Province of St. Louise Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview Matushek, Sister Cecile, D.C. Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Brewer, Sister Helen, D.C. Location The location of the interview St. Louis, MO Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data MP4 Duration Length of time involved (seconds, minutes, hours, days, class periods, etc.) 0:31:40 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Brewer, Sr. Helen, D.C. Oral History Subject The topic of the resource Brewer, Sr. Helen, D.C.; Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul; School integration; Children's Health Insurance Program (U.S.) Description An account of the resource Sister Helen Brewer discusses her education by the Daughters of Charity, her decision to join the community, her family life during World War II, desegregation of schools in the South, teaching in San Francisco in the late 1960s, and the challenges of expanding health service at Seton Medical Center in Austin, TX Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Brewer, Sr. Helen, D.C.; Matushek, Sr. Cecile, D.C. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Daughters of Charity Archives, Province of St. Louise, Emmitsburg, MD Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2019-07 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Keefer, Scott (Transcriber) Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Permission for any type of publication of archival materials, including text, photographs, video, or audio must be secured from the Daughters of Charity Communications Director before publication.ÿ Contact archvies staff for appropriate forms and contact information During the lifetime of the interviewer and interviewee, permission must be secured from the individuals directly. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Audio/mp3; Application/pdf Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Oral History Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Brewer, Sister Helen Oral History Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant 1934-2019 Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul Education Healthcare https://scfederationarchives.org/files/original/ef1f8511fcd9f1fc0ffdbafc7331b2f0.jpg d270b3a1f110982d1f7f2a0a504de665 https://scfederationarchives.org/files/original/b8142033602509a72faeea27d6d7413e.mp3 a07480c6e6d18e3fcc8a57ba8608e408 https://scfederationarchives.org/files/original/674962ba888ec9bedc03547ed0bf767c.pdf 0fad7d38ca434172caa7933a2a1c5fc0 PDF Text Text Sisters  of  Charity  -­‐  Halifax   Oral  history  interview  of  Sister  Caroleen  Marie  Browne   Interviewed  by  Sister  Theresa  Corcoran  at  Mount  Saint  Vincent,  Wellesley  Hills,   Massachusetts  on  November  28  2005.   Transcribed  by  Mary  Flynn,  Congregational  Archivist  in  2020.       Note:  Sister  Caroleen  Marie  was  supplied  a  questionnaire  to  prepare  for  the  oral   history.  When  she  reads  a  question  out  loud,  it’s  indicated  by  quotation  marks.   Any  additions  in  brackets  are  added  by  the  transcriber  for  context.       Sister  Theresa  Corcoran    0:01       -­‐conversation  between  Sister  Caroleen  Marie  Brown,  and  Sister  Teresa  Corcoran   taped  at  Mount  Saint  Vincent,  Wellesley  Hills,  November  3,  2005.       S.  Caroleen  Marie  Browne    0:08       I  won't  forget  it's  there.  I'll  turn  my  head  that  way.     Sister  Theresa  Corcoran    0:10       Okay.       S.  Caroleen  Marie  Browne    0:12       This  is  Sister  Caroleen  Browne.  I  entered  the  community  in  1941,  was  professed  in   1943  and  have  spent  43  years  in  teaching.  All  aspects  of  all  grades  from  5  to  12.   No,  from  5  to  12  plus.       Sister  Theresa  Corcoran    0:51       Which  ones  did  you  like  best?     S.  Caroleen  Marie  Browne    0:54       I  liked  Seton  Hall  [Patchogue,  New  York]  best.  The  spirit  there  was...  well  it  kept  us   going.  And  it  was  not  just  the  spirit  of  the  teachers,  it  was  the  spirit  of  the   youngsters,  too.  "What  was  the  importance  of  your  mission  ministry  for  you?"   Well,  it  brought  some  of  those  students  closer  to  God,  help  them  be  a  little  bit   more  like  good  human  beings.  That  would  be  the  kind  of  thing  that  I  would  be   looking  for.  I  would  give  you  a  ministry,  stimulate  your  growth.  Physical  growth,   eating.  [both  Sisters  laugh].   �   Sister  Theresa  Corcoran    1:56       Some  places  fed  better  than  others,  right?       S.  Caroleen  Marie  Browne    1:59       Yes.  In  order  to  keep  teaching  well,  I  felt  I  had  to  read  more  and  that  did  stimulate   my  growth.  "What  has  been  the  impact  of  personal  events  on  your  life?"       Sister  Theresa  Corcoran    2:32       Personal  events  could  be  almost  anything.  Family  events,  community  events.   Maybe  there  aren't  any  that  you  want  to  mention.  What  about  the  local  or   national  or  world  events?     S.  Caroleen  Marie  Browne    2:48       Well,  personal  events,  during  the  1980s  almost  everyone  in  my  family  died  and  I   had  to  take  care  of  all  the  post-­‐death  problems.     Sister  Theresa  Corcoran    3:08       Almost  all  these  people,  your  brother?     S.  Caroleen  Marie  Browne    3:10       My  brother,  my  two  aunts,  an  uncle,  cousin.  People  who-­‐  we  were  close,  my  aunt,   especially.  In  the  impact  of  Church  events,  well,  I  think  Vatican  II  was  a  very   important  point  in  my  life  as  well  as  in  the  life  of  the  church.  And  I  am  very   distressed  to  find  that  there  are  some  people  nowadays  who  are  trying  to   downplay  Vatican  II,  because,  to  me,  it  was,  it  was  the  Holy  Spirit  speaking  to  John   XXIII.  "Has  your  image  of  God  changed  over  the  years?"  Well  yes.  Not  that  I  had   much  of  an  image  of  him.  But  it  has  changed.  I  won't  go  into  the  detail.  [both   laugh]     Sister  Theresa  Corcoran    4:21       The  details.  Okay.       S.  Caroleen  Marie  Browne    4:24       "What  have  been  your  greatest  disappointments?"         �Sister  Theresa  Corcoran    4:31       You  may  not  have  many.     S.  Caroleen  Marie  Browne    4:33       No,  I  don't  think  I  had  too  many  disappointments,  really.       Sister  Theresa  Corcoran    4:36       -­‐both  things  happened,  were  there  different  ways  instead  of  coping  with  them?       S.  Caroleen  Marie  Browne    4:42       Oh  yes,  well  during  the,  during  the  '80s,  1980s  I  just  kept  going  along.  Moving   along.  That's  the  way-­‐     Sister  Theresa  Corcoran    4:54       That's  the  way  you've  always-­‐     S.  Caroleen  Marie  Browne    4:56       Yes.  "How  have  certain  restrictions  affected  you?"       Sister  Theresa  Corcoran    5:08       I  think  by  that  we  mean  the  restrictions  we  used  to  have  in  the  community.  Did   they  affect  you  very  much?     S.  Caroleen  Marie  Browne    5:19       Not  terribly  much.  I  didn't...  I  minded  them.  But  I  think  we  all  minded  them  to   certain  extent.  "Are  there  any  other  points  or  comments  you  wish  to  make?"  No,   except  that  I  had  a  very  happy  life.  A  very  contented  life.  And  I've  made  a  lot  of   good  friends  and  I  think  that's  one  of  the  great  things  about  religious  life.  We  do   make  friends  and  good  ones.  And  we  shall-­‐  we  shall  continue.     Sister  Theresa  Corcoran    6:15       What  about  when  you  moved  from  let's  say  New  York  to  Halifax  and  back?     S.  Caroleen  Marie  Browne    6:22       -­‐when  I  moved  to  Halifax?  That  wasn't  too  bad  a  move  at  all.  That  wasn't  too   difficult.  When  I  moved  back  here,  well  that's  a  little  more  difficult  because  this  is   more  of  an...  old  kind  of,  that  always  goes.  An  old  kind  of  structured  living.     �   Sister  Theresa  Corcoran    7:04       More  structured?       S.  Caroleen  Marie  Browne    7:04       Yes.  The  little  green  thing?  I  should-­‐  [noises  in  the  background  as  Sister  Theresa   moves  the  recorder]       Sister  Theresa  Corcoran    7:25       Okay.  I'll  put  that  on  top  of  the  table.     S.  Caroleen  Marie  Browne    7:33       [laughs]  I'm  sorry.  Hope  it  doesn't  spoil  anything.     Sister  Theresa  Corcoran    7:37       The...  you  mentioned  the  impact  of  church  events  in  Vatican  II.  What  about  the   position  of  women,  did  that  ever  enter  into  your-­‐     S.  Caroleen  Marie  Browne    7:52       Oh  yes,  that  that  bothers  me  very  much.  And  the  fact  that,  I  heard  on  EWTN  the   other  day  a  big  long  talk  about-­‐  by  two  priests  taking  turns  about  how  men  are   being  left  out  because  our  Lord  is  a  feminine-­‐  attitude  of  our  Lord  are  being   emphasized.  But  I  say,  who  emphasizes  that?  Women,  who  are  they?  I  think  they   do.     Sister  Theresa  Corcoran    8:33       What  do  they  mean  by  that,  I  wonder?     S.  Caroleen  Marie  Browne    8:35       They..  that  kindness  and  relationships  are  so  important,  are  being  made   important  and  they,  I  guess  they  find  them  too  feminine.  I  was  ready  to  throw   something  at  them.  [both  laugh]  I  mean,  after  all,  who  has  done  the  greater  part   of  the  work  in  the  church  for  years  and  years  and  years?  It  hasn't  been  the  men.   And  nobody  should  be-­‐  no,  no  women  are  trying  to  push  a  feminine  Christ  on   them.  They  can  make  Christ  whom  they  please.  That  has-­‐  that  bothered  me  a  little   bit.     �   Sister  Theresa  Corcoran    9:36       Your  work  didn't  bring  you  into  situations  where  you  would  have  found  that   frustrating  or  would  it  have?     S.  Caroleen  Marie  Browne    9:42       No.  Any,  any  work  I  did,  mostly,  the  most  contact  I  had  with  priests  was  through   First  Communion  classes  and  things  like  that  and  we  went  out  to  the,  to  the...  the   church.  Some  of  the  priests  were  very  nice  to  us  and  some  of  them  who  kind  of   brushed  us  off.  But...  when  we  were-­‐  from  Seton  Hall,  there  was  a  group  of  us   that  went.     Sister  Theresa  Corcoran    10:26       Oh  right,  yeah.     S.  Caroleen  Marie  Browne    10:27       And  taught  Sunday  school  or  Tuesday  school  or  whatever  school  it  would  be.     Sister  Theresa  Corcoran    10:41       So  that  was  probably  the  only  kind  of  parish  work  that  you  really  did?       S.  Caroleen  Marie  Browne    10:45       Yes.  I  never  did  anything  more  than  that.     Sister  Theresa  Corcoran    10:58       So  as  a  young  person  who  were  some  of  the  people  that  you  would  have  some...   look  up  to?     S.  Caroleen  Marie  Browne    11:03       Looked  up  to?  Well,  Miriam  Constance,  Frances  de  Chantal.  Now,  Frances  de   Chantal  had  a...  very,  she  had  a  lot  of  people  who  didn't  like  her  at  all  because  she   was  very  exact.  And  she  was,  but  we  were  in  St.  Peter's  at  the  time,  we  had  just   come  out  of  the  novitiate  and  some  of  the  older  Sisters  are  using  us  -­‐  were  using   us  to  do  their  work.  They  were  very  successful  for  quite  a  long  time  before,  before   somebody,  Sister  Frances  de  Chantal  found  out  and  then  the  thing  was,  there  was   a  list  on  the  bulletin  board  of  who  was  to  go  to  take  care  of  confessions  every   Saturday  afternoon.  They  had  confessions,  one  Saturday  for  the  parochial  school   �boys,  one  for  the  parochial  school  girls,  one  for  the  public  school  boys,  one  for  the   public  school  girls.  And  we  were  assigned.  Everybody  in  the  house  was  on  the  list.   Well  one  Saturday,  one  Sunday,  Sister  Frances  de  Chantal  called  me  and  said,   "where  were  you  yesterday  afternoon?"  I  said,  "I  was  at  church,  confession."  And   she  said,  "but  it's  not  your  turn."  I  said,  "No,  but  we're-­‐  most,  most  Saturdays  they   asked  Margaret  McGaughey  and  myself  to  go  over  because  they,  they're  going   home  to  visit  their  parents."  [laughs]  Yeah,  so  she  said,  "you  don't  have  to  go   anymore.  Anymore  when  they  ask  you,  you  just  say  no."  And  heard  that  she  got  a   hold  of  all  of  them,  without  us  knowing  it,  you  know.  Because  nobody  ever  asked   us  again.  [both  Sisters  laugh]  I  can  see  how  they  didn't  like  her  because-­‐  but  she   was  good,  she  was  good  to  us,  she  was  trying  to  be  fair  to  us.  Peter  Claver,  I   admired  her  very  much.       Sister  Theresa  Corcoran    11:03       Were  you  teaching  with  her  or  was  she  principal?     S.  Caroleen  Marie  Browne    13:41       No,  she  wasn't  principal.  I  was  teaching  with  her.  And,  she...  she  would  always   say,  "every  youngster  had  good  in  him.  You  have  to  look  for  the  good."     Sister  Theresa  Corcoran    14:10       Sometimes  you'd  look  out  at-­‐     S.  Caroleen  Marie  Browne    14:12       Yes,  but  she,  she  always  looked  for  the  good  in  every  single  youngster  she  taught.     Sister  Theresa  Corcoran    14:18       Now  was  this  at  Patchogue?     S.  Caroleen  Marie  Browne    14:20       Seton  Hall,  yes.  And  she  always  looked  really  good  and  she  always  found  it  and   they  would  do  anything  under  the  sun  for  her  because  they  thought,  they  trusted   her  entirely.  Completely.  So  I  learned  a  lot  from  her,  from  being  with  her.     Sister  Theresa  Corcoran    14:58       -­‐just  as  a  colleague,  really.     �S.  Caroleen  Marie  Browne    14:59        Yes.     Sister  Theresa  Corcoran    15:09       Are  there  any  people  that  you  still  keep  in  contact  with  in  New  York  or  in  Halifax?     S.  Caroleen  Marie  Browne    15:16       Well,  I  keep  writing  back  to  Walsh  House  [Halifax,  Nova  Scotia].    I  admire   Margaret  very  much.  Margaret  Molloy.  And...     Sister  Theresa  Corcoran    15:41       Of  course  a  lot  of  those  people  that  we  knew  in  those  days  have  gone  too.     S.  Caroleen  Marie  Browne    15:44       Yeah.  That's  true.  The  ones  who,  in  the,  had  in  the  earlier  days,  they're  not,   they're  not  around  anymore.       Sister  Theresa  Corcoran    16:18       Do  you  have  any  other  comments  you  want  like  to  make?     S.  Caroleen  Marie  Browne    16:18       I'm  grateful  for  everything  that  was,  that's  ever  been  done  for  me.     Sister  Theresa  Corcoran    16:24       Of  course  you've  done  a  lot  of  things  yourself  for  people.     S.  Caroleen  Marie  Browne    16:26       I  try  to  do  something.  [both  laugh]  I  thank  you  for  all  you  did.     Sister  Theresa  Corcoran    16:40       I  didn't  do  too  much,  you  were  doing  more  for  me.       � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Sisters of Charity of Halifax Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Browne, Sister Caroleen Marie, SC, Interview Subject The topic of the resource Sisters of Charity of Halifax; Teaching; Browne, Sister Caroleen Marie, SC Description An account of the resource Sister Caroleen Marie Browne (1923-2007) describes her life as a Sister of Charity - Halifax, including her entrance to the community in 1941, her 43 years missioned as a teacher of grades 5 to 12, family, and Sisters she admired. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Browne, Sister Caroleen Marie, SC; Corcoran, Sister Theresa, SC Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Sisters of Charity - Halifax Congregational Archives Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 11/28/2005 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Flynn, Mary (Transcriber) Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Online access is provided for research purposes only. For rights, reproduction, and use requests or more information, please contact the Sisters of Charity – Halifax Congregational Archivist. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 00:17:03 Audio/mp3 Audio/cassette Application/pdf Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Oral History Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context SCHalifax_Browne Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant 1941-2005 Education Sisters of Charity of Halifax https://scfederationarchives.org/files/original/a7556e4dc3c2489aa33a791d0b1215f3.jpg cfcaaded973ef9fa0945152e7c689bc0 https://scfederationarchives.org/files/original/3fc3f8f174dae1d5c268f4c88ca5021b.pdf d03ffbc8aa0bcbf7f9034e997e02bf3a PDF Text Text OH-84: Sister Mary Agnes Carey This interview is being conducted as part of the Oral History Program of the Sisters of Charity of Seton Hill. The interviewee is Sister Mary Agnes Carey. The interview is being conducted by Sister Mary Noel Kernan at St. Joseph’s School, Kangjin, Korea. The date is April 23, 1987. SMNK: Sister Mary Agnes, have you always wanted to be a missionary? SMAC: I think I can say yes to that. When I was little, I always went to a Catholic school, always was attracted to religious life. I thought I would be a Sister someday, but what community…no thought of that. This was in grade school, I can remember Sister at one time asking, what do you want to be when you grow up? I remember I really longed to be a Sister. This might have been a fake. I even said, I am trying now to be nice to little children, but I guess I had to be nice to little children because there were others at home. There were three younger than I. SMNK: How many were in your family? SMAC: There were seven of us. Just five boys and two girls. But anyway, this missionary question. My first younger brother, Jimmy, was two years younger. We were in from 5th grade on at Cathedral School. If I was in 5th grade, he would have been in 3rd because we were only two years apart. We would walk to school so that we could get there in time to go to the 8 o’clock Mass at the Cathedral and we were right across the street to get to school. You had to be in school by 8:30, as I recall. I remember, after Communion, we wouldn’t receive Holy Communion, we would have had our breakfast first. We didn’t like to be late. We would have been in trouble if we were late. We got to school on time, but often walking to school or walking home – it was about a half an hour walk from our school to our home. We would talk about what we were going to be and we were both going to be missionaries. Go to a foreign country and all that. Jimmy, when he got to high school – he went to Central – after the second year, he was fussing that he wanted to be a Brother. So my parents let him go, but he knew that he was welcome back home if he went and didn’t like it. He actually was a Brother for 35 years. During that time, I remember I was at Seton �Hill, it was in the 1940s, he wrote to me a series of letters. He felt he should be a priest. In order to be…there are no priests in the Christian Brothers, so if he would be a priest, he would have to leave that. Yet he loved the Brothers. He put it in the hands of his superiors and eventually they told him they thought his vocation was to be a Brother. I remember the last letter – I received one and about two days later, I received another one. That one said, thank God, it’s decided I will stay with the Brothers. He stayed. He was actually a Brother for 35 years. At the time, when he decided he wanted to be a priest, he was Provincial. I think one Brother every year was selected to make a second novitiate in Rome and he had that opportunity and so on. He had been in charge of their Scholasticate for a number of years. It must have been an awfully hard decision to make and yet, he was getting older and this was what… and as a child, he had always said that before he ever heard of Brothers. I think it must have been his teachers up to that point had been Sisters and most of the people in Pittsburgh didn’t know anything about Brothers until they came. I remember my mother sort of fighting that battle for years. Why doesn’t he go the whole way and become a priest? That’s actually the way it turned out. By the time he became a priest, both my parents were dead. In fact, my father, he died just a month after Jimmy went to the seminary. That seminary, when he decided to be a priest, he went to Baltimore. That’s where he had been all of his religious life, in Baltimore. He had never come back to Pittsburgh to teach there. The Cardinal of Baltimore asked him what seminary he would like to go to. He gave him two choices. In Baltimore, St. Mary’s Seminary or Emmitsburg. He said he chose Emmitsburg. I wonder sometimes, it was probably his association with Sisters of Charity. The Cardinal told the Rector, who was Father Flynn at that time, that when he felt that Jimmy was ready for ordination to let him know and he’d ordain him. He went to the seminary in January of 1970. At Easter time, he was made a deacon and in May, he was ordained with that class. The boys at the seminary had a great time with him. They said, well, we have heard of instant soup and instant coffee, but this is the first time we have heard of instant priests! So that’s Jimmy. He didn’t become a missionary. Anyway, back when you were talking about missionary. My mother, when we had anybody broach this idea of being a missionary, she always said - a missionary term meant foreign missionary, you know. It did to us, too. She always said, there’s enough work to be done at home. Home missions. Lord rest her. She died in 1955. It was 1960 when I came here. I think maybe she was rooting for me up there. She saw a global picture by that time, perhaps. As far as our family was concern, my mother had great faith, I think and my father was a great guy, too. Not as religious in the sense of devotional as my mother, but I remember hearing him say one time, the two great devotions are the Sacred Heart and the Blessed Mother. If you have those, you can’t get in trouble. He was faithful. One thing I remember, right before I entered, my mother told me – and I think she never told me before that because she thought it might influence – She said, before each child was born, she offered the child to go, but asked God to give the child good health and good morals and if the child could learn to get along. I think God answered her prayers because I became a Sister and Jimmy was a Brother and then a priest. My brother, Tom, is now pastor in Pittsburgh at St. Simon and Jude Church and on June 14th, we will celebrate his Golden Jubilee ordination. She had her answer, I think. SMNK: There were other children? �SMAC: Yes, there were five boys. Frank, the oldest, died in 1985. Father Tom was next. And Joe. Joe is in East Liberty now. A faithful parishioner there. I came next. There were three boys ahead of me. Then Jimmy that we just talked about. Bill who lives in Lancaster now. Grace is in Florida. The other day when I was cleaning out the drawer, trying to get ready to go to the States. I came across a retreat notice that I had and as I looked, I could see Jimmy. Jimmy had said to me at one time, right before I was making retreat, we didn’t know what good hands we were in when growing up. I remember him talking to mother about retreat and meditation. He was telling her about it and she was telling him how when she washed us, fed us, and took care of us that she was praying for us all the time. He said, wow, we didn’t know all that was being done for us even before we were able to remember. About that missionary business. Since my mother, she wanted us – as I said before, she certainly prayed that if God wanted us in His service, she would gladly give. She was a little hesitant on foreign mission things, you know. She used to say, there is enough work to be done at home. I guess there still is, always is. I remember thinking when I was in high school, I should think about home missions. The Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament hadn’t been founded too long before. I remember at school the Mercy Sisters telling us that Mother Drexel had made her novitiate there and not Mercy in Pittsburgh. But I never got around to writing and I suppose, I hope, the Lord had in mind that I could fulfill that wish somewhere, somehow, some other way. SMNK: And you’ve done that. SMAC: I hope. I’m here, anyway. I am trying to think, that first year when we were in Mokpo, none of us knew the language, but Sr. Alice had really looked a little harder at it before we came. She has a good ear. A music teacher. Very good ear. She picked up a good bit. One day when we were working, somebody came to the door and I went. The man started talking to me and I started answering him, but he left. Sr. Alice laughed and she said to me, Sister, if you would have spoken to him in English, he might have understood you. I said, wasn’t I speaking Korean? She said, no, you were speaking Spanish! I guess it had to be a foreign language and the only foreign language I knew a little bit about was Spanish, so that was it. Father Tom Lacey was here the other day and he had somewhat the same experience. He was talking about that. When he thinks of a foreign language, he thinks of Spanish and sometimes he is saying something in Spanish. That year, we could talk with each other and we knew what was going on there. Somebody was always coming in and having something funny to tell, especially with words, with language. One of the Caritas Sisters used to come over in the evenings. They shared with us. They gave us half their house, the better half, I think. One Sister, she wanted to learn some English. She would have questions and one night she kept saying “Hogan.” She would say something and say “Hogan.” She would say something else. This “Hogan,” because it was an Irish name, was sort of getting to us. We wondered what in the world “Hogan” was. Whatever she was saying, none of us could make out what “Hogan” was. The next day, a teacher we had was talking and she said, “Hogan.” We jumped at her. Everybody said, what’s “Hogan.” It just meant or. O-R. This Sister was saying, you could say it this way or this way. We knew neither one, so it didn’t make any sense at all. I remember one day, we had gotten our stove. Just gotten it. Things had come from the States. We had a kerosene stove. We were going to celebrate that night. We were going to have a party, I guess. Sr. Mary Noreen was making cocoa and she asked me for the sugar. What I thought, maybe it was marked sugar. I took it and gave it to her. After she makes it - [tape cuts out] We knew we couldn’t drink �it. We threw it away. Where are we going to throw it? We opened the sliding doors and we threw it out in a big pile of snow. That sliding door we opened was on a passageway from a little room we used as a dining room into our kitchen. Would you know, that snow melted, but that cocoa..that salty cocoa was there and everytime we passed we’d say, my sin is always before me. SMNK: So the language gave you many interesting things and then you also learned to share community those years? You got very close like that, very much. SMAC: Speaking of language, it wasn’t always the Korean language, it was also the English language. You see, the people, the missionaries we knew were the Columban Sisters and there were 2 American Sisters among the ones there. Most of the Irish priests. There were some American Columbans, too. I remember one day the pastor came down and he said to me, we had been there just about a month and everyone was helping us, too. Where you could get this and try to find a cook for us and so on. He came down and he said, Sister, you never paid me for that paraffin. We didn’t buy any paraffin. And he said oh, you Americans, call it kerosene. We had. We paid him really quick for the paraffin or kerosene, whatever you have. We went to a picnic with the Columban Sisters one day and one of them said…Mother Mary Lucy said, and now we’ll take flasks with us. Flasks? Flasks meant to us something in your back pocket, you know. They called a thermos, a flask. A Sister sent over one time and she wanted gum. We didn’t know…gum, chewing gum. The Irish would say, we hadn’t a clue what she wanted. It turned out to be paste. We never called it gum. SMNK: A moment ago, I was thinking how close you seemed in community. The American Sisters seem to know each other, to know one another and one another’s family’s and one another’s interests very much. Much more so than I see in the United States. How would you account for that? SMAC: I think we were isolated and we could speak English. Incoming mail was a big event. I’ve read stories of little town’s where the children went out to watch the train pass by. This was a daily something. We had to talk about something. The thing we knew most intimately are our people. A letter would come and you wanted to share it with the others. Everybody seemed interested and you began to know the names of each of the family and different things about them. Funny things. Sr. Alice would say, her mother used to say, if you haven’t head your ‘nough, you’ve had your share. Things like this. We’d begin to quote some of these things that each one had found at home. Then when we went home, you’d call… Sr. Alice’s mother. We met her. We had dinner at her home before we came. There was some kind of meeting there. You would just naturally go home and you’d be sure to call everybody’s mother and father or somebody in the family or this kind of thing. Really, it was like our extended family. As it goes now, this is coming with the Korean Sisters. As you get to know them, the ones you are more familiar with, the ones you’ve lived with, you feel close to their families, too. As you’ve noticed, I think, this year we’ve had a number of deaths in the family’s of the Sisters. Well, you know what death means. As families too, as we begin getting older and you’re experiencing this. I think that life and death brings us together in this way. I had much the same experience out West. When it was isolated, when it was far away. When you went out there, you didn’t know when you were going to get back. It was the same thing here. When we came, the thought was we would go home every seven years. Well then, I think when Sister Mary Noreen, she was, perhaps, she was here seven years before she got back. I had to �go to a Chapter, even though I wasn’t elected to it, Bishop Connare said we were supposed to have a representative from here. I just went and sat there and finally, Sr. said I could say something, so they asked me to talk about Korea. I really think that maybe the people who went first to Bethesda or Glyndon, they probably had something of that feeling. You were more united because it was like family. Really and truly like a family because you had to talk. The most likely thing would be what you knew best. SMNK: One of our concerns when the Sisters first went to Korea was that you would have a great many physical hardships to endure. Do you have any comment on that? SMAC: One of the worries, I know, before we came, people were thinking about the food. That we wouldn’t be able to eat the type of food they have here, but from the very beginning, Archbishop ____ and the Columban Sisters could get things at the commissary, the foreigner’s commissary, so anybody that was going to Seoul, any of the communities would ask what you wanted. For example, for breakfast, we were always able to get bread, so we could have toast. You always could get eggs. No problem with that. You could buy jellies. Jams. Things we would have at home like for lunch where you would have lunchmeat or something like that, that wasn’t…you could get sometimes get cans of Spam. You can eat too much Spam, you know, sometimes. We were careful. People had warned us about kimchi that this was very hot, spicy. For your own healthsake, it would be wise not to indulge too much. Some of the priests thought they wanted to go Korean all the way, but they did too much too soon in the line too soon and they really ruined themselves. We, certainly, were never tempted to do that. We were interested in eating as much as we could of what people were eating and the Koreans were always saying to us, what do you eat? They could see we were healthy. I don’t know whether I mentioned this before, but one time when Sr. Alice was teaching…we used to divide the English conversation classes. We would take 45 children and three Sisters would take 15 a piece. We should have been able to do something with them and we did, I suppose, because at least their pronunciation was alright. Sister Alice, one day, she went in after 7th period, which was sometime late in the afternoon, and she had 15 of these little girls who couldn’t learn Korean very well even. They said to her, Sister, of course they were talking in Korean, tell us about America. She said, in English? They said, oh no, no. She said, what do you want to know about America? You ask me questions and I will answer them. They said, what do you eat? She said, for breakfast we have toast. Well, what’s toast? She explained what that was. Toast, coffee, and fruit, and eggs. One little girl said, no rice and kimchi? And she said, no. Well, for lunch? What do you have for lunch? She said, well you usually have a sandwich. Do you know what a sandwich is? No. So she explained what a sandwich is and they were interested. Then maybe soup. In those days, we couldn’t get milk either. We could get powdered milk, but it didn’t taste very good when you mixed it up. This same little girl says, No rice and kimchi? And Sister said no. So they got to evening meal and I guess the children were really hoping she could get some rice and kimchi. So she explained what an evening meal would be. Mashed potatoes, some meat, and vegetables, and tea and coffee and, perhaps, some cake or fruit for dessert. And, you have the question, no rice and kimchi? And she said, no. And the little girl said, Oh, I never want to go to America! We told this to our cook and she laughed because she knew we were eating very well, but most of those little girls were eating that. �Gradually then, as we began to have Korean Sisters in the community, we wanted to be sure they were eating Korean meals, but they even agreed that it would be good to keep the breakfast a Western breakfast and most of them have no trouble with that at all. Occasionally, if a Sister isn’t well, she might want a porridge for breakfast that’s made of rice. Any of them that would feel the need, there is no problem with them having that. The trouble is, it’s easier to get our breakfast ready to get theirs. The cold. We heard early that it was cold. We did what the Koreans do. We put on more clothes. You put on, instead of one undershirt, you have a couple. One is thermal or something. It’s very warm. You put on two or three pairs of stockings. This makes trouble for the kind of shoes you wear, so you have some boots and some other things, but eventually, you get used to how to manage it. The house, we would have the kerosene stove. We would be warm enough when you were in a certain room. When you experienced this summer, we even have coal stoves in the rooms where we gather as a community. It’s not as convenient as central heating, but we manage. I think that we didn’t have as many colds as the Sisters back home would have. I don’t understand it exactly except that you get so used to it, you cope with it. If you were looking to see how do you keep warm enough and if somebody got a good idea. For instance, in ______, the Columban Sisters used to…they would heat bricks and put them in the bed. That’s what we did. We would have a regular brick and put a towel around it. It would be very hot. That would be still partially warm in the morning, but once you got to sleep, there was no problem. That, too. Anyone who found any way…when some of the Sisters were up in language school, somebody discovered if you had an electric blanket, it would solve a lot of your night problems. You wouldn’t need to bother with that brick, you know. So we began that. A number of the Sisters had that. If you left it on too long, your skin dried out, sort of. Some didn’t want that. It was easier to put on an extra blanket, an ordinary blanket or something, to keep warm. What else do you have besides food and cold? SMNK: Well you surprised me when you said electric blanket. I was under the impression that there was no electricity in Korea. SMAC: Oh, that’s always interesting. We had electricity, but you were never sure when you were going to get it. In Mokpo, we used to laugh. If we have visitors, the electricity goes off. It wasn’t consistent. I think some of the machines were sort of broken because the current coming in was not consistent, but we had electricity. One of the problems was, with the machines you had, like a tape recorder, record player, iron, and these things, it was when they broke, you couldn’t get them fixed. We had brought them from America and the local companies weren’t too busy making all of these things. Once they did, the Koreans can copy like anything. If they get hold of something, they can figure how it works and they can fix things. Now, it may not last too long, but they’ll get it working for you. In the house, we didn’t have too many plugs. Electric switches. We found out early on, whether you used them…you’d think it would be nice in a room to have two or three. SMNK: Oh, outlets. SMAC: Outlets. That’s it. You have to pay for everyone. A certain amount every month for every outlet you had. And the builders will tell you that, so when you are building, you know, you think, put one here. It would be nice because you have your desk here or you have one there or you want �to change your desk over to here. We ended up getting all kinds of extensions, so you didn’t have to pay for all of these. SMNK: And you still do that? SMAC: We still do, yeah. The water situation. When we came to Kangjin, there was a well on the property and then when the built the first part of the school, they dug a deeper well. We found out later that the people used to say, if the Sisters’ well runs dry, we are in trouble. It was apparently a very good well and we never had any problem with the water that time. The well was good. It produced a lot of water. When we built it, there was a tank above the staircase and the water supply was good. When we built the convent, that water was piped over to here still. SMNK: Could you drink the water? SMAC: We could but a Maryknoll Sister, Sister Augusta had said to us, she said the water is good. But well water is very good, but you don’t know about the pipes. They aren’t used to piping water so much and she said it may be there would be rust and other things in those pipes. She said, at least for your drinking, you should boil the water. Until we got our ultra pure now with that… [END OF TAPE 1-A] � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Sisters of Charity of Seton Hill Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview Sister Mary Noel Kernan Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Sister Mary Agnes Carey Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Audio cassette tape Bit Rate/Frequency Rate at which bits are transferred (i.e. 96 kbit/s would be FM quality audio) 96kHz Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Carey, Sister Mary Agnes Oral History Subject The topic of the resource Sister Mary Agnes Carey Description An account of the resource An oral history of Sister Mary Agnes Carey, a Sister of Charity of Seton Hill from 1934 until 1993. The interview was conducted by Sister Mary Noel Kernan on April 23, April 24, and May 5, 1987. Sister Mary Agnes Carey - religious name of Sister Thomas Aquinas - was born on January 18, 1916 and entered the Sisters of Charity of Seton Hill in September of 1934. She received a bachelor's degree in Latin from Seton Hill College in 1940, a master's degree in Spanish from Middlebury College in 1956, and a doctorate from the University of Madrid in 1958. She was part of the first group of Sisters sent to Korea in 1960. Prior to that she taught at SS. Peter & Paul in Arizona and at St. Luke's in Carnegie. She was also part of the Spanish department at Seton Hill College. She was Principal of St. Joseph in Kang Tjin, Korea, from 1960-1971. Sister Mary Agnes died on October 12, 1993. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Sisters of Charity of Seton Hill Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Archives of the Sisters of Charity of Seton Hill Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1987-04-23 1987-04-24 1987-05-05 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource All rights belong to the Sisters of Charity of Seton Hill, Greensburg, Pennsylvania. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Audio cassette tape Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Oral history Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context OH-84 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Gwangju Kwangju-si (Chŏlla-namdo, Korea) 1916-1987