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Fourth Sunday of Easter
7 May 2006
Dear Friends in Christ,
When our parish school opened in 1900, the Ursuline Sisters provided our principal and teachers, and they remained at St. Mary's until 1933. From that time until now, the Sisters of Charity of Our Lady of Mercy (the diocesan congregation founded in 1829 by John England, the first Bishop of Charleston) have provided our principal and, for most of those years, either all or some of our teachers. But nothing under the sun is forever, and because they no longer have Sisters to send to St. Mary's, our 73 year old friendship with the OLM's is nearing an end.
The last of the OLM Sisters to serve St. Mary's is also the remarkable woman who has given 18 years of extraordinary leadership to our school: Sister Veronica Janas, OLM. Sister Veronica came to us when the parish was only 40% of its present size, both in membership and physical scope, and she took the helm of a school with declining enrollment and financial trouble. Eighteen years later she leaves us a truly outstanding school with a firm foundation and a very bright future. This transformation was made possible only by her labor of love, and there is no way adequately to express our gratitude to this woman of God.
Sister Veronica will, of course, be with us through the end of this school year, and so you will all have an opportunity to express your gratitude for her long and distinguished service to St. Mary's. I encourage you to do so either in person or with a note, and please remember that because she is a consecrated religious, Sister Veronica possesses nothing of her own, so those of you who would like to give a gift in her honor should direct it to the Sisters of Charity of Our Lady of Mercy. Also, on Saturday May 20th at 6:30 pm, there will be a reception in honor of Sister Veronica in the Monsignor Baum Gymnasium. This is an evening for adults only, and reservations are required; those who would like to attend must call the school office at 271.3870 by 3 pm this Thursday to make your reservation.
As the Ursulines were followed by the OLM's in 1933, so the last OLM will be followed by the soon-to-arrive Dominican Sisters of Nashville, and thus does the life of the parish and our school go on. Later this year we will welcome the arriving Dominicans in an appropriate way, but for now our task is to speak words of love and gratitude to the dedicated woman who for nearly two decades has been our teacher, guide, and friend: Sister Veronica Janas, OLM.
Father Newman