Nov. 12, 2014 All glory, praise, and thanksgiving to God for the gift of my vocation as a Sister of St. Joseph for 50 years! I graduated from Holy Family School and Immaculate Heart Academy (IHA) where I was taught by the Sisters of St. Joseph. Daily Mass became a way of life for me during my high school days. It was these opportunities and experiences that nurtured my desire to grow in God's love and to be of service to His people and sparked the desire to enter religious life as a Sister of St. Joseph. Sister Rosa Mystica Bailey, who taught me twice at Holy Family School, had always been a rock for me throughout my school years. She influenced my vocation to enter as a Sister of St. Joseph. I entered Mater Dei College, Ogdensburg, in September 1963, and received the habit in June 1964. I continued my education at Mater Dei College and later at Providence College, Rhode Island where I studied Scripture. It has been a privilege for me to teach Scripture to so many people in the Formation for Ministry Program and to dedicated men in the Diaconate Program for the Diocese of Ogdensburg. It was always the faces of the children that energized me as I taught in the Catholic schools across the diocese from the shores of Lake Champlain, to the Adirondack Mountains, to the tip of the Canadian border, and to the shores of the St. Lawrence River. I learned from the children simplicity and creativity. The ministry of being teacher and principal in the Catholic Schools broadened my vision to help children become who God intended them to be. After 34 Years of Catholic school teaching, I moved to the Diocesan Office in 2000 to become the Formation Director for the Diocese of Ogdensburg Department of Education. In 2006, as Director of Evangelization, I facilitated workshops and retreats for the people of the parishes across the diocese. I was asked to leave the diocesan family in 2012 to serve the Sisters at the Motherhouse. This was to become a ministry of love, compassion, and care to the Sisters who shaped and formed me in my early years of education. Now, it was my turn to return all that had been given to me back to them through love and service. It is with great gratitude to God that I continue to thank Him for all the graces and blessings bestowed upon me as I continue to serve Him, the Sisters, the People of God in the North Country, and reach out to the "dear neighbor" whom we serve in our ministries. |