Sharing & Caring Spring 2013

Sharing & Caring Volume 23 Number 4 • Spring 2013 Sisters of the Precious Blood • Dayton, Ohio • www.preciousbloodsistersdayton.org

Liturgy at Salem Heights

Inside: a look at pastoral coordinators begins on page 8

From the President’s Desk

Parish life and liturgy: community and Eucharist

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his Sharing and Caring issue focuses on two aspects dear to our charism as Sisters devoted to the Precious Blood of Jesus: community and Eucharist, expressed both in liturgy and in life.

We are aware through the stories told by her children that Maria Ann Brunner, the Swiss widow who was our foundress, frequented her parish church whenever she could. The Eucharist, whether celebrated at Mass or adored in the tabernacle, was at the heart of her faith.

In her later years, when she lived at the Loewenberg school with her priest-son, Fr. Francis de Sales Brunner, she chose the room that was closest to the chapel so she could easily spend night hours before Jesus in the Eucharist. It was in the Eucharist and the Paschal Mystery that she recognized the power of the Precious Blood.

The women she worked with at the school began to imitate her and when they became our Sister pioneers in America, they brought with them that deep love for and commitment to the Eucharist.

Our Sisters today continue that tradition in their daily lives and ministries. Sisters have always been deeply involved in the liturgical life of their parish, and the celebration of the Eucharist is certainly the highlight of our community gatherings.

This commitment to the Eucharist and to building community among the faithful has, in recent years, led 2

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some Sisters into a new and different form of ministry: being appointed by a bishop to be the leader of a local parish community. Although not ordained and therefore unable to preside at the celebration of the sacraments with a parish, the Sisters are nonetheless responsible for the pastoral, spiritual and administrative life of the parish community.

This includes the education of children and adults in the Catholic faith, preparation for the sacraments including preparing adults to be fully initiated into the Church, visiting those who are sick and caring for those who are poor, providing opportunities for growth in the spiritual life, and fostering involvement in issues when both the Gospel of Jesus and the teachings of the Church call us to guard the dignity of the human person and the respect for life.

Because the Church takes seriously the nurturing of a local faith community beyond simply the gathering at Sunday Mass, this form of nonordained parish leadership is finding its way into more parishes as we experience the decline in the number of ordained priests.

Immersion in the Eucharist is also an immersion into the mysteries celebrated throughout the church year. If you were to attend Mass celebrated in the chapel at Salem Heights, especially on a feast day, you could probably determine the season of the liturgical year

simply by the colors worn by the Sisters.

When the priest says at the end of Mass, “Go in peace, glorifying the Lord with your life,” the Sisters know that they have been given a mandate to live the Eucharist each moment of each day, and they respond with a hearty, “Amen.”

That “amen” is lived out in daily lives of personal and communal prayer, a focus on fostering and nurturing life and being agents of reconciliation where there is disagreement and discord, seeking out the lost, lonely, alienated and oppressed, being flesh and blood acts of compassion, and in the end bearing the suffering of diminishment and death with faith in the mystery of the dying and rising of Jesus and in a loving and forgiving Triune God. Eucharist and community is not something we do, but is our way of life. 

Sister Joyce Lehman President, Sisters of the Precious Blood

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have always enjoyed going to Mass and being in church. As a kid in Catholic grade school we would attend Mass every Friday. Later, I was an altar server for both Sunday and weekday liturgy. I was fortunate that my mom talked our parish priest into letting me make my first Communion months ahead of my classmates so I was able to participate in Mass more fully. I tried to never miss Sunday Mass, not because it was a rule, but because I truly enjoyed it.

As I got older, my affinity for Mass strengthened. I began to experience the inspiration that comes from the gospel and a good homilist. The Gospels themselves are so well-written that the stories and lessons are easily understood. That’s the secret of good writing: presenting the material in a style that doesn’t impede the message. Matthew, Mark, Luke and John were masterful at it.

The homilist draws out further explanation and meaning.

Music, the Liturgy of the Eucharist, the décor and the community itself, all give Mass an added dimension. As Chris-

Established in 1989, Sharing & Caring is published quarterly by the Sisters of the Precious Blood, Dayton, Ohio, to communicate news of the congregation, Precious Blood Spirituality, and to promote the sisters’ mission.

All editorial content and photographs in Sharing & Caring are copyrighted. For reprint permission, please contact the editor.

tians, we are called to worship together publicly and in community.

In this issue of Sharing & Caring, we look at liturgy at Salem Heights. With her staff of volunteers, Precious Blood Sister Pat Will arranges Masses, adoration, devotions and special celebrations. Her work is full of details, making sure the more than 20 liturgical ministries are being handled. The final product is their reward.

We also tell the story of pastoral coordinators and how they keep parishes alive.

Sister Mary Garascia’s work at Holy Name of Jesus Parish – a community of about 3,000 Catholics in Redlands, California – highlights the role these people play in the absence of a parish pastor.

In addition we profile Sister Rosalie Kastner and her unique hobby of recycling greeting cards, detail recent vocations events and cover the annual homicide memorial service. You will also find the obituaries of Sisters Helen Theresa, Canice and Hedwig.

You will also notice that Sharing & Caring has been

Editor’s Notes

The inspiration of Mass

redesigned with more color, larger type and additional white space. One of our goals was to give Sharing & Caring a more magazine-type appearance to better reflect its role as the primary printed communications vehicle for the Sisters of the Precious Blood. We would encourage you to visit our website at www.preciousbloodsistersdayton.org for expanded coverage of our stories. Our Facebook presence is also growing steadily so please “like” our Facebook page and visit us on social media. 

Dave Eck Director of Communications

CPPS Mission Statement Urged by the redeeming love of Jesus the Christ and rooted in Eucharistic prayer, we Sisters of the Precious Blood proclaim God’s love by being a life-giving, reconciling presence in our fractured world.

Address communications to: Office of Communications Sisters of the Precious Blood 4000 Denlinger Road Dayton, OH 45426

Editor Dave Eck, Director of Communications

Printing Thomas Graphics, Dayton, Ohio

Layout and Design Michelle Bodine, Media Specialist

Phone: (937) 274-2707 E-mail: communications@ cppsadmin.org

PRINTED WITH SOY INK ON RECYCLED PAPER

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Sister Profiles

Sister Rosalie sends her greetings

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allmark has nothing on Sister Rosalie Kastner.

The former teacher’s hobby is recycling greeting cards into new creations for holidays, celebrations and birthdays. It's a hobby she's enjoyed for about 20 years.

“I’m just a giving person,” she said. “I’m glad I can do it.

It just keeps me busy.”

In her room at Salem Heights, used greeting cards are stored in shoeboxes organized by topic and holiday.

Sister Rosalie sorts them and saves what she can. She tears off covers and cuts out the sayings and designs. Those are pasted onto construction paper to create something new. Craft scissors give her cards a decorative finish.

She distributes birthday cards to Sisters who live in Salem Heights and the

nearby area, often leaving them outside their rooms.

She maintains a list of Sisters’ birthdays and makes the cards up to three months in advance. She also makes cards for Christmas, Easter and Thanksgiving.

“It’s just maintaining that contact with them,” she said.

“I think they appreciate it.”

Sister Rosalie also makes hundreds of Christmas ornaments each year from recycled cards. They are given to Sisters and friends. Dozens are sent to residents in area nursing homes for use year after year.

A life-long collector of various items, Sister Rosalie’s card-making goes back to her days as an elementary school teacher. She would make Valentine’s Day cards and sell them to students for a penny as fund raisers. She contin-

Sister Rosalie Kastner’s homemade greeting cards. Michelle Bodine photos

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Sister Rosalie Kastner holds a box of greeting cards that she makes for Sisters and friends.

ued her hobby after retiring and moving to Dayton. Word about her efforts got out and soon people were sending her used cards to recycle.

A former teacher, Sister Rosalie taught at schools in Ohio, Arizona and California for about 60 years. She still teaches once a week at the Brunner Literacy Center. She also keeps busy with jigsaw puzzles, visiting the Sisters at Emma Hall on Saturdays and is a sacristan in the Salem Heights Chapel.

Still, recycling greeting cards is her special gift.

“I just enjoy doing it,” she said. “I think it’s good because it’s a way of cheering up people, especially the ones who need it the most.”  Story by Dave Eck

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ERSAILLES, Ohio – There was plenty of socialization and laughs at St. Denis Parish on April 8 as Sisters from nearly a dozen women religious communities met with single women to discuss vocations to religious life at a Martha Dinner.

The event, sponsored by area vocations directors and the Cincinnati Archdiocese Vocations Office, was designed to give women an opportunity to meet Sisters and learn more about their lives in a relaxed, social setting. The Sisters of the Precious Blood were among the communities represented and several Precious Blood Sisters attended.

Cincinnati Auxiliary Bishop Joseph R. Binzer and Jill Swallow, a Consecrated Woman of Regnum Christi, were keynote speakers.

In remarks during mealtime prayer, Bishop Binzer noted that the Blessed Virgin Mary

embraced God’s call to bear God’s son. In his own call to the priesthood, the bishop explained that he was working as a certified public accountant when a co-worker simply mentioned that Binzer would make a good priest. The bishop encouraged the women to listen to God’s call for each of them.

“God, I feel, has a plan for all of us. God calls us in ways that might seem hidden,” the bishop said. “We are all part of the body of Christ.”

RC consecrated woman Jill, who grew up in Versailles, explained that she helped lead a retreat at Moeller High School in Cincinnati when she first heard a call. She noticed the priests and Sisters at the retreat seemed so happy and at peace. It got her thinking about religious life. She soon met the Consecrated Women of Regnum Christi and found a fit.

Single women and women religious listen to a speaker at a Martha Dinner April 8 at St. Denis Parish in Versailles.

Vocations

Sisters discuss vocations with single women at Martha Dinner

Consecrated Woman of Regnum Christi Jill Swallow speaks during the Martha Dinner.

“Everybody’s path is different,” she said. “(God) gives us the grace we need to fulfill the vocation he’s given us.”

The women nodded and smiled as the speakers shared their stories.

After dinner, the women visited each congregation to interact with the Sisters and get more information about the different communities. Sisters explained the various charisms and ministries in which they are involved.

Amy Pequignot said she was impressed when Swallow explained that God doesn’t call those equipped for a religious vocation, but equips the people called.

“I don’t know where God is calling me,” Pequignot said.

“Instead of closing the door, I want to explore all my options.”

Additional Martha Dinners are being planned.  Story and photos by Dave Eck

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Vocations

Program introduces Mother Teresa students to vocations

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ometimes faith in action starts early.

That’s the premise behind a program at Mother Teresa Catholic Elementary School to introduce students to religious vocations and teach them more about religious life.

Students from fifth through eighth grades will have the opportunity to discuss religious vocations and meet with men and women religious during quarterly events at the school.

The effort is directed by Precious Blood Sister Anne Schulz (M. Jean Loiuse), the school’s principal, and religion teacher Dacia Daniels.

About 20 students attended the first event March 7, which featured Sister Anne and Father Kyle Schnippel, vocations director for the Archdiocese of Cincinnati. Father Kyle explained the process of becoming a priest, the life of a priest and the importance of being open to God’s call.

Sharing his own vocation

story, Father Kyle explained that he was in college when he felt a call to the priesthood.

At first he didn’t believe it was real, he said, but today he wouldn’t give up his priestly vocation for anything.

Likewise, Sister Anne explained that she first became interested in religious life when she attended a vocations event while in high school, where she learned about the Sisters of the Precious Blood.

As part of the evening, students asked questions about religious life. Some of the topics included how a priest becomes pope, the differences between diocesan priests and religious communities, and the meaning of church symbols.

Sharing these stories and talking about religious life can spawn interest in religious life and cause people – especially students - to contemplate their own call, Sister Anne said.

“If they start thinking about it they realize it could be an

Students at Mother Teresa Catholic Elementary School in Liberty Township, Ohio, listen to a presentation on vocations.

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Precious Blood Sister Anne Schulz, right, and religion teacher Dacia Daniels explain the various vocations in the church during a vocations night at Mother Teresa Catholic Elementary School.

option for them,” Sister Anne said. “Most of our kids don’t see religious. They hear about them.”

Plans for future events include trips to Mount Saint Mary of the West Seminary in Cincinnati and Salem Heights, the Precious Blood Sisters Motherhouse in Dayton.

Members from other religious communities will be invited to speak to the group.

Sister Anne, who has served as vocations director for the Sisters of the Precious Blood in the past, came up with the idea for the program. Daniels helped organize it.

“Families are so busy and the fact that we are at a Catholic school means it’s our responsibility to open their eyes to the world of being Catholic. It’s an extension of our role here at the school,” Daniels said. “I think it meant a lot to them to hear Sister’s story. They know she’s a nun, but they don’t understand what her religious life is about.”  Story and photos by Dave Eck

In Brief Left: Employees with their service award certificates during the annual employee awards luncheon on April 10. From left: Patsy Nelson, Sister Jean René Hoying, Ruby Felton, Sister Gerri McGeorge and Sheree Newmann. Michelle Bodine photo.

Right: The Sisters of the Precious Blood were recognized for contributions to Catholic Social Services of the Miami Valley.

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ister Karen Elliott knew she was nominated for the first annual Outstanding Educator of the Year Award at Mercy College of Northwestern Ohio, but she didn’t think she had a chance of winning because her students have said she is a “tough” professor.

She was wrong.

Sister Karen, who has been chairperson and associate professor of religious studies at the Toledo-based school since 2004, was given the award at a ceremony in March.

“To be honored the first time out of the entire faculty is very humbling. It’s both humbling and affirming,” she said. “It was the only faculty-specific award that was given. It was very meaningful to me because it was totally student-driven.”

Known for her service trips to Guatemala and classroom prayer, Sister Karen said she teaches her students about religion and about life. That resonates with the students, as reflected on teacher evaluations Sister Karen receives.

It’s also important students know she cares about them and their success. It’s part of her charism as a Precious Blood Sister and follows the example of Maria Anna Brunner, who founded the Sisters of the Precious Blood.

“It’s just helping students be aware of God’s presence,” she said. “I’ve been told I’m a tough teacher, but (students) have also said I make them think. To me, theology is really about helping people connect the dots between the sacred

and the ordinary. That’s what I help them do.”

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he Sisters of the Precious Blood were honored as Trailblazers by the Christian Women’s Coalition in Dayton at a reception March 23. The coalition recognizes older adults who have made a significant impact on the lives of others.

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atholic Social Services of the Miami Valley recently gave an appreciation award to the Precious Blood Sisters in recognition of the community’s financial contributions to the agency.

In addition to providing financial assistance to the agency, Sister Florence Seifert (M. Antonine) is an incoming member of the agency’s board of trustees; Sister Arlene Hirsch (Marie Andre) volunteers at the CSSMV’s food pantry and Erma House; and Sister Nancy Raley (M. Alan) volunteers in the food pantry and development office.

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he Magnificat Cluster of Precious Blood Sisters made a monetary Christmas donation to a Coldwater family whose 3-year-old son was diagnosed with Hunter Syndrome MPS II. The incurable disease inhibits the body’s cells to perform properly and may cause progressive damage.

The eight Sisters who make up the cluster gather each Christmas for prayer, dinner and a social time. Instead of purchasing gifts for each other, the Sisters donate money to someone in need of assistance. This was the fifth year the cluster has donated funds.  Spring 2013

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Cover Story

Pastoral coordinators keep parishes humming

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EDLANDS, Calif. – It’s a bright, sunny Sunday afternoon at Holy Name of Jesus Parish and Precious Blood Sister Mary Garascia (Thomas Miriam) is visiting faith formation classes. With a bright smile and plenty of enthusiasm she delivers a lesson on the sacraments to fourth graders, then drops in on a classroom of fifth and sixth graders to talk about Lent.

Sister Mary Garascia shares a lesson on Lent to a 5/6th grade Religious Formation Class at Holy Name Parish in Redlands, Calif.

Later she takes a group of third graders through Stations of the Cross in the parish church, all the while fielding questions from the kids.

On this day she will also chat with parishioners before and after Masses, read announcements, talk with parish staff and stop by her parish office to check up on email.

Come Monday morning she’s back at the parish to begin her workweek as pastoral coordinator of this bustling Catholic community of about 3,000 families. One of about a dozen pastoral coordinators in the San Bernardino Diocese, Sister Mary leads the parish in the absence of a pastor. She was appointed to the position in 2008 by San Bernardino Bishop Gerald R. Barnes.

On her staff are Rev. Oscar Reynoso, Fr. Wharren Banico, and Msgr. Cesar “Ching” Encinares who celebrate Masses, provide the other sacraments and pastoral care. They are sacramental ministers, but none is parish pastor. It’s Sister Mary who oversees the staff, conducts meetings, keeps an eye on the budget, writes the weekly column in the parish bulletin, and is leading the process to build a new church.

The job requires a “broad Story and photos by Dave Eck

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Cover Story Left: Sister Mary Garascia speaks with Los Angeles Auxiliary Bishop Gerald E. Wilkerson at the 2013 Los Angeles Religious Education Congress.

Right: Sister Mary Garascia leads a group of third grade students through the Stations of the Cross at Holy Name of Jesus Parish in Redlands, Calif.

skill set,” she says, explaining that her past experience as a teacher, parish director of religious education, manager of Hoover Place, and service on the Sisters’ congregational leadership team prepared her to be a pastoral coordinator.

“You have to know enough about every area to supervise well. That’s why it helps to have a broad ministry experience,” she said. “There is very little I encounter in which I haven’t had some transferrable experience.”

The pastoral coordinator model of parish leadership is outlined in Canon Law 517.2, which enables a diocesan bishop to entrust operation of a parish to a layperson in the event of a priest shortage.

A veteran pastoral coordinator, Sister Mary previously served in similar jobs at parishes in Ohio and Michigan.

She first ran the now-closed Assumption Parish in Dayton from 1995-98, reporting to a neighboring pastor, Fr. John Krumm, who gave her leeway to handle administration and build rapport with parishon-

ers. After a sabbatical and three years managing Hoover Place in Dayton, Sister Mary was named parish life director at St. Mary Parish in Hemlock, Mich., in 2002.

After six years in Michigan, Sister Mary moved to California and the Holy Name of Jesus. It wasn’t the easiest assignment.

Parishioners were still upset over a 2006 merger of two parishes that had created the new Holy Name of Jesus. They also felt betrayed by a previous pastor, who left the parish abruptly – without saying goodbye - and eventually left the priesthood.

During her first weekend on the job, Sister Mary spoke at all the Masses and encouraged parishioners to share their grief and concerns, said Sharon Callon Schwartz, the parish’s director of pastoral life and communications.

“That was very courageous, especially in a very angry place,” Callon Schwartz said.

“I think how good it was that she did that. One thing she’s always done has been very transparent.”

‘You have to know enough about every area to supervise well. That’s why it helps to have a broad ministry experience.’

- Sister Mary Garascia

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Cover Story Sister Mary Garascia, left, leads a staff meeting at Holy Name of Jesus Church in Redlands, Calif., with Carrell Jamilano (center), director of youth ministry and Sheryl Harder, parish business manager.

‘It’s not about us. It’s about the mission of Christ and His presence.’

- Bishop Gerald R. Barnes

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That transparency, her empowerment of laity and collaborative management style helped sooth hurt feelings and helped the parish heal.

“There was resistance in the beginning to a coordinator,” said Kathie Cejka, a parishioner for 30 years. “First of all we weren’t over the merger and then we lost the pastor who was appointed. There were a lot of hard feelings there so she really had to come into a very difficult situation. She took her time and I think she has won over most of the parish and things are much better, a much happier feeling.”

Today parishioners and staff embrace her style and speak of the parish growth.

“I think she’s wonderful,” Cejka said. “She is a great leader, a great educator and someone with a lot of foresight for the parish.”

The parish coordinator model of administration in San Bernardino was initiated by former San Bernardino Bishop Phillip F. Straling and has been expanded under Bishop Barnes.

The model works as parishioners begin to understand and accept it, Bishop Barnes explained in an interview with Sharing & Caring.

“I think people have seen that the parishes do not regress,” he said. “The parishes thrive. We’ve seen in a couple of our parishes where a pastoral coordinator was in office when a new church was dedicated. They helped build that church. That says a lot to the people there.”

With the pastoral coordinator and sacramental minister working together, the model provides an adequate balance of parish administration and evangelization.

“The key is in forming a good team,” Bishop Barnes said. “If there is collaborative ministry and there is transparency and trust, then you can do both because you recognize where the gifts are. It’s not about us. It’s about the mission of Christ and His presence.”

The 517.2 model enables priests to focus more on sacramental ministry, for which they are best trained. The parishioners benefit because their parishes are well-run and they can receive more focused pastoral care.

“One of the most crucial factors is the behaviors of the priests who are assigned,” Sister Mary said. “They have to understand and support the model.”

The reality, Bishop Barnes said, is that there simply aren’t enough priests to administer parishes, much less serve in other ministries. The coordinators keep parishes running today while giving the local ordinary additional options for utilizing priests as more are ordained.

Today all the parishes in the San Bernardino diocese are be-

Cover Story

ing prepared for coordinators as the model moves from parish to parish. The diocese uses the model in a single parish for no more than nine years. Pastoral coordinators are initially appointed for three years and can then be reappointed for a six-year term before moving on.

That strategy helps allay fears that a parish is being slighted because a coordinator is assigned.

“Initially people, unfortunately, saw this in some ways as their parish being treated as second class because they didn’t have a priest as pastor,” the bishop explained. “I did not want to say that a parish would have this model forever.”

While coordinators help address the immediate priest shortage, Bishop Barnes prays that the model will be maintained in some form even when priests are available.

“I don’t think we can do ministry well, with the challenges we face today, without the shared ministry,” he said. “We need to help build those teams.”

The diocesan bishop needs to embrace the model for it to be effective, said Precious Blood Sister Marita Beumer, who worked as a pastoral coordinator at three parishes in the San Bernardino Diocese for about 10 years.

“You couldn’t do it without the bishop being totally immersed in it,” Sister Marita said. “He respects us, but he calls us to task as well.”

As pastoral coordinator at St. Bernardine Parish in San Bernardino, she helped preserve and renovate the church built in 1910, the oldest building in the diocese. Another task was bringing together the various cultures that made up the parish. She would hold events for

Sister Mary Garascia speaks to an Religious Formation Class at Holy Name of Jesus Parish in Redlands, Calif.

both the English-speaking and Hispanic communities. In time they started to blend.

We had English and Spanish speakers, but have one community,” she said. “We had everybody together.”

Coordinators typically bring collaborative leadership to parishes, Sister Marita said.

“Most of us who were coordinators, men and women both, learned to use the laity a little more effectively,” she said.

“That whole idea of acceptance, inclusivity, pastoral leadership is one of the key things.”

Sister Berenice (M. Edward) Janszen served as coordinator at a total of five parishes in Michigan, Indiana and Kentucky.

Her longest tenure was at St. Francis Xavier Parish in Otisville, Mich., where she served for four years in the 1980s.

She created a woman’s club at the parish, a liturgy committee, began a Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults program and helped run the parish religious education program, she recalled. Among her big-

‘I think you have to be open to listening to the people and I think you have to have high dreams of what you want the parish to become.’

- Sister Berenice Janszen

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Cover Story Sister Mary Garascia, right, faciliates a table discussion at the 2013 Los Angeles Religous Education Congress in Anaheim, Calif. From left is Michael Svoboda and Victoria Kennedy.

The late Sister Rosalina Gonzales was one of the earliest Precious Blood Sisters to serve in the coordinator ministry.

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gest projects: overseeing the construction of a new church.

“I was able to really move the church into a lot of new areas. I think you have to be open to listening to the people and I think you have to have high dreams of what you want the parish to become,” she said. “It’s a challenge.”

Another example of the Sisters doing ecclesial work usually delegated to ordained persons occurs in mission countries. There, pastoral associates and catechists have enhanced roles in creating local ecclesial communities and ministering to them.

The late Sister Rosalina Gonzales (Maria Carona) was one of the earliest Precious Blood Sisters to serve in the coordinator ministry when she began that type of work in Chile in the 1970s. She was replaced

by Sisters Regina Albers (M. Regina) and Marifé Hellman.

In Chile, the Sisters had the responsibility of a rural parish, Los Bajos de San Agustin, where they worked with the

youth, took communion to the sick and guided the Catechists in the outlying areas. In an unusual move, they were also granted faculties to administer the sacraments of marriage and baptism, as well as conducting funeral services. The Mass and Sacrament of Penance were offered by a Priest from a neighboring parish.

“It was very fulfilling,” recalled Sister Regina, who worked in the parish for about two years. “The people responded beautifully.”

One of her most treasured stories of those days was of a family who had a newborn infant.

Sister Regina visited the family shortly after the baby was released from the hospital and noticed the baby still seemed ill.

Sister Regina urged the family to return to the hospital to have the infant examined. The family resisted a trip back to the hospital, but eventually agreed to go. A couple of weeks later, the grateful parents visited Sister Regina with their now healthy baby. Had Sister not insisted they return to the hospital, the baby likely would have died.

It was a unique time for the Sisters in Chile, especially with the faculties they were given.

“I think looking back, it’s more awesome than what I felt when I was doing it,” Sister Regina said. “I feel it was a very special gift that was given to me, and I thank God I was able to reach out to the people and touch their lives and bring God to them in a very pastoral way.”  Ed. note: Sister Mary will be starting a new job as a special assistant to the pastor at the parish beginning July 1.

Fr. Raynoso has been named pastor.

Sister Mary will work with him on special projects and other ministries.

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ix days a week the Sisters living at Salem Heights – often joined by employees and visitors – come together in the chapel for Mass. The services are inspirational with music, the Liturgy of the Word and the occasional amusing story before the homily by Missionary of the Precious Blood Father Ralph Verdi, chaplain at Salem Heights.

On the cover: Sister Pat Will and John Buehler prepare for Holy Thursday Mass. Above: Sister Pat Will and John Buehler warming up before choir practice in the chapel at Salem Heights.

Michelle Bodine photos

As stated in Our Way of Life, Precious Blood Sisters “express our deepest sentiments and manifest our redemptive vocation through Eucharistic prayer, particularly the Mass.”

Eucharist is a main part of life in the central house and is the basis of the community’s charism.

And behind every Mass is Sister Pat Will (M. Terence) and her team of volunteers.

As liturgy coordinator at Salem Heights, Sister Pat makes sure liturgy happens.

She also plans prayer services, coordinates extra holy hours and arranges special devotions. It’s a fulfilling job, she says, and one that’s full of details. There are the little things like coordinating cross bearers and lectors for every Mass. And there are big things, like working with a committee to plan music for Sunday Masses.

“I love what I do,” Sister Pat said. “I always want to make it better. There are so many things you can do to enhance the liturgy and provide Story by Dave Eck

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Cover Story

Hands and heart make Mass special at Salem Heights

Cover Story Left: choir practice in the chapel at Salem Heights. Michelle Bodine photo. Right: Precious Blood Sister Pat Dieringer carries the cross and Sister Deb Huss carries the book during the entrance procession at Mass in Salem Heights chapel on April 7, 2013. Missionary of the Precious Blood Father Ralph Verdi is on the left. Katie Hoelscher photo.

‘There are so many things you can do to enhance the liturgy and provide prayerful experiences.’

- Sister Pat Will

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prayerful experiences.”

While the end result comes off smoothly, there are plenty of hands working in the background. Sister Pat keeps a spreadsheet of more than two dozen sacramental ministries – from watering the plants in the chapel to serving on the liturgy planning committee — that go into the Masses. The ministries also include sacristan, altar minister, lector, Eucharistic minister and cantor. A regular group of nearly 30 Sisters participate.

Sister Pat occasionally has to “coach” the Sisters in the various elements, but many of them have been participating for so long that they know what needs to be done and how best to do it.

“We try to do everything as closely as we can to a parish,” Sister Pat said. “All these women are people of prayer and they want to do well what they can do. I’m sure

that’s what God sees, what’s in the heart.”

On special days, such as Palm Sunday, there are additional tasks.

“The finished product looks so simple, but a lot of work went into buying the right palms, the person who put the palm bouquets together and the people who pulled them apart so they can be handed out,” Sister Pat said.

“There are all those little things.”

Music also plays a significant role in making the celebrations a success. A Liturgy Planning Committee made up of Sister Pat, Sisters Laura Will (M. Clarus) and Catherine Nader (M. Ruth Ann), and Salem Heights music director John Buehler meets regularly to reflect on the readings of Masses for the coming months and selecting appropriate music to fit the themes. Buehler then designs and prepares the weekly Worship Aides for use

Cover Story Left: Precious Blood Sister Rosemary Lindemann lights the Easter Candle before Mass April 7 in the Salem Heights chapel. Right: Precious Blood Sister Eva Roehrich washes the sacred vessles after Mass at Salem Heights on April 7, 2013. Katie Hoelscher photos

at daily Mass.

The right music, played well, gives the prayers and readings added depth, Sister Pat explained.

“I think you have to have good music and a good homilist,” she said. “I think you have to have participants there who want to be there.

You have to be able to engage everybody to want to pray or sing.”

Buehler, quoting from Sing to the Lord, Music in Divine Worship, USCCB, said music enhances liturgy.

“Music fosters good celebration. Poor music weakens it,” Buehler said. “Music can bring feelings and inspiration like nothing else can. It’s extremely important.”

Buehler also directs the

Salem Heights choir which is made up about 8-15 Sisters who participate regularly. The choir typically practices once a week and helps lead the congregation in song.

For Buehler, good liturgy occurs when people are actively singing and even humming the hymns as they leave Mass.

“I think we all feel better if the participation is good. The job of the choir is to help promote the participation of the rest of the people. That’s our primary purpose,” Buehler said. “We can plan the music ever so carefully, but if it isn’t played in the way that helps lead the people in prayer then I’m not doing my job.”

Sister Pat, who sings in the

choir and is a back-up organist, has been liturgy coordinator for about nine years.

She started her ministry as a primary classroom and music teacher for 13 years. She worked at the Maria Stein Retreat House for 10 years and then spent 23 years in parish ministry.

Her current ministry has helped her grow spiritually.

“I feel that at this time in my life I’m concentrating on the tangible things of God,” she said. “I feel like I’m working more with spirituality and prayer all the time. I think the presence of God has become more real in my daily life. Since I’m so focused on liturgy, spirituality and prayer, it’s like God is always there.”  Spring 2013

15

News

Traffic stop

By Sister Donna Liette, C.PP.S.

W

ho is protecting the children and mothers on the streets of

Chicago?

I had just turned out of the parking lot of our Precious Blood Center on my way to a meeting in downtown Chicago when two of our kids hollered from the bus stop, “Sister, you got some change?”

While I was waiting for the light to turn green so I could turn onto a side street and find my change, a car pulled up out of nowhere on my right and the driver said, “Go, the light’s green.”

I ignored him because I wanted to turn and he was in my turn lane, so I motioned for him to go and he sped off.

I turned the corner, wondering what that was all about. I found some change, gave it to the kids and thought I would be on my way, only to find the same car and driver right in front of my car, hood to hood.

Feeling a bit fearful, I quickly turned into a nearby alley, backed out and went on my way, hoping I could get to my meeting on time. I was again waiting for the light to turn green, when the same man showed up on my left, window rolled down, showing me his Chicago Police badge! Oops!

Then he began to interrogate me: “Do you know where you are going?” (I still have Ohio plates and, being an elderly white woman, I understood why he might have thought that I was lost!) I replied, “Yes, sir.”

“Did you know those kids that you were talking to?”

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Sharing & Caring

“Sure, those are our kids!”

“What are you doing in this neighborhood?”

“I work here.” (He looked surprised!)

“Do you know there are lots of shootings all around here?

It is very dangerous.”

“Yes, I do know.”

“It is really not safe for you here.”

Finally, I was on my way to the meeting, but I couldn’t help wondering if he cared as much about our children, our mothers standing at bus stops unprotected, as he did for me.

They are the ones who are not safe. I felt sad and angry all at the same time.

When I told Lamonte Lay, one of our youth, what had happened to me, he told me his experience of being pulled over by a police officer as he was driving home one evening: The cop said, “Step out of the car.”

I thought to myself, Damn, I thought he just wanted my license and insurance. I got out of the car and put my hands on my trunk.

The cop asked, “Where you on your way to?”

I answered, “Just leaving my girlfriend’s house.”

The cop asked, “Do you have anything in the car?”

I answered, “No, I don’t smoke.”

He checked the car. A second cop told me to come to the back seat of the squad car so he could run my name. He put me in handcuffs and into the back seat.

Is it not our Precious Blood spirituality that keeps us awake and calls us to stay with these children until all is well?

He asked if I had ever been arrested, and I said, “Yeah.”

He got my description, and we waited about ten minutes.

The second cop said, “He’s clear.” They let me out and I drove off.

Yesterday, I was sitting in a circle of youth who are ambassadors of peace in their respective schools. Each student told of his/her experiences of being pulled over by police and questioned. Each one had a story that no child should ever read, experience or witness.

The children in our neighborhood live with the constant sound of police sirens and gunshots. They live in fear of being stopped by the police, of being shot or being arrested for criminal activity while innocent.

For these children, it is hard to sleep at night; and for us who read these stories and live among them, it is also hard to sleep.

Is it not our Precious Blood spirituality that keeps us awake and calls us to stay with these children until all is well?  This story originally appeared in the March issue of the Cincinnati C.PP.S. Newsletter - reprinted with permission.

In each issue of Sharing & Caring we recognize the birthdays of the Sisters of the Precious Blood. Congratulations to the Sisters celebrating Spring and Summer birthdays.

MARCH

24

1 4

MAY

Claire Louise Sharpshair Irene Holz

APRIL 7 9

10 13

15 20

Rosemary Goubeaux Martha DeBrosse Virgine Elking Mary Barbara Agnew Maureen Mangen Joyce Ann Zimmerman Mary Charlene Yarger Genevieve Volk

6 13 19 20 22 23

Jean René Hoying

Deb Huss Rose Helene Wildenhaus Carmen Voisard Arlene Hirsch Benita Volk Nancy Recker

JUNE 7 9

Joanne Belloli Theresa Walter

17 23

Ann Catherine Lehmkuhl Adeline Mertz

JULY 1 2 3 4 9 14 16 27

Marie Renee Hoehn Rita Manriquez Patricia Ann Dieringer Barbara Jean Backs Elizabeth Westgerdes Amy Junk Laura Will Joyce Langhals

In Sympathy We offer sympathy and prayer to the following Sisters of the Precious Blood who have recently lost family members to death.

Sister Noemi Flores on the death of her mother.

Sister Paula Gero on the death of her sister, Mary Ella Gero Zacklene, who died Jan. 13.

Sister Kathryn Gunther on the death of her sister, Dr. Ellen Gunther.

Sister Renee Hoehn, on the death of her brother, Don Lindeman, who died April 1.

Sister Irene Holz on the death of her sister-in-law, Helen Holz, who died Dec. 29.

Sister Deb Huss on the death of her aunt, Joanne Elchert, who died Feb. 14.

Sister Noreen Jutte on the death of her sister-in-law, Pat,

who died Feb. 21.

Sister Nadine Kaschalk on the death of her brother, David, who died Jan. 29.

Sister Dolores Keller on the death of her brother, Tony Keller, who died April 22.

Sister Katie Lett on the death of her sister, Mary Lewis, who died March 26.

Sister Mary Ann Mozer on the death of her brother, Dennis, who died March 10.

Sister Tish Rawles on the death of her brother-in-law, Donny Berwick.

Sister Terry Walter on the death of her mother.

Sister Carmen Voisard on the death of her sister, Elf-

rieda Borchers, who died on Jan. 16.

Sister Rita Yahl, on the death of her sister-in-law, Pat Yahl, who died April 14.

Remembering...

Roman Buehler, brother of Salem Heights music director John Buehler, who died Jan. 3.

Joe Klosterman, brother of CPPS Finance Director Steve Klosterman.

Missionary of the Precious Blood Father Bernard Mullen, brother of deceased Sister Agnes Christine.

Edna Rutschilling, sister of deceased Sister Mary Catherine Kunk.

Spring 2013

17

News

Happy Birthday

News

Homicide victims remembered at annual memorial prayer service

S

ALEM HEIGHTS – About 40 people attended a Jan. 12 memorial prayer service at Salem Heights to remember those killed by violence in Dayton, Harrison Township and Trotwood.

Residents, victims’ family members and local law enforcement representatives – including Montgomery County Sheriff Phil Plummer – joined Precious Blood Sisters for the service. The annual event is an outgrowth of the homicide vigils the Sisters help organize each time a person is killed by violence in the three communities around Salem Heights. A group of people visits the site of the death to pray and remember the victim. The vigils culminate each year with the memorial service, now in its third year.

As part of the service, the

names of the 25 people lost to violence last year were read aloud, each accompanied by a chime. The group also prayed, sang and shared their stories of losing a friend or family member to violence. Laura Phillips, whose nephew was killed several years ago and regularly attends the vigils, said it is important to support victims’ families. “The pain never goes away,” she added.

The vigils originally began in the late 1990s, but were suspended for several years.

The practice was restarted in 2006. The vigils are held on the Saturday following a homicide, and typically draw 20-25 people.

“It’s always asking God to help us change things,” said Sister Jeanette Buehler (M. Paul Agnes), who organizes the vigils. “It raises a con-

The Rev. Jerome McCorry and Maryellen Forgay read the names of those killed by violence in Dayton, Trotwood and Harrison Township last year.

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Sharing & Caring

Sister Jane Francis chimes a bell after each name is read aloud at the memorial prayer service for those killed by violence in Dayton, Trotwood and Harrison Township Jan. 12.

science of how much violence there really is in our city. It re-blesses the neighborhood where the violence is occurring.”

She recalled that in one instance residents of the neighborhood participated in the vigil. In another, a resident came up to the group and thanked them for being there.

In yet a third instance, the group was holding a vigil and a stranger driving by stopped and joined in. The group doesn’t judge the victim.

“We truly believe the vigils are making a difference in the conscience of the city,” Sister Jeanette said. “I think this gives residents some hope that people out there really do care.”

After the service, members of the group joined the Sisters living at Salem Heights for food and fellowship.  Story and photos by Dave Eck

September 1916 — April 22, 2013

Mass of Christian Burial for Precious Blood Sister M. Canice Werner, 96, was held at Salem Heights April 25.

Sister died at Maria Joseph Center April 22. She had been a Sister of the Precious

Blood for 81 years.

A native of Oldenburg, Ind., Sister Canice spent 33 years as a teacher and later principal in elementary schools in Celina, Ottawa, Millville, Cleveland and Dayton, Ohio. She taught at the University of Dayton from 1966-69. After acquiring an M.S. in Educational Research Sister did full time research and evaluation six years for the Dayton Board of Education in Ohio. She

served her Sisters in the Order for 12 years in various capacities: Southern Region Councilor, Secretary General and President.

After leaving the presidency in 1984, she worked in the Saginaw Diocesan School Office and later served at Marian Hall in Flint, Mich.

Sister later served in Dayton as the Congregation’s Mission Coordinator and was actively involved in the Homicide Vigils, the Interfaith Action for a Violence Free America, the Interfaith Ministers for Reconciliation, and the Greater Dayton Christian Connections.

She is survived by her sister, Marie (Herman) Ruef of Dayton, Ohio and many nieces and nephews.

Internment was in the Salem Heights Cemetery.

Sister Helen Theresa Fleischman (M. Thomasine) October 1929 — March 17, 2013

A Mass of Christian Burial for Helen Theresa Fleischman was held March 20 at Salem Heights in Dayton.

Sister Helen Theresa, 84, died March 17 in Dayton. She had been a Sister of the Precious

Blood for 66 years.

A native of St. Joseph, Mo., Sister entered the Congregation at the age of 16. For 62 years Sister Helen Theresa ministered as a cook and housekeeper in Cincinnati, Toledo and in Marquette, Mich. She worked for then-Cincinnati Archbishop Karl J. Alter for more than 25 years and later worked for then-Cincinnati Archbish-

op Joseph L. Bernardin. In 1992, she moved to Marquette, Mich. to cook for former Cincinnati Auxiliary Bishop James H. Garland when he was named bishop of that see.

In both Ohio and Michigan, Sister visited people in prison. She also helped out in food pantries, and gave Communion and encouragement to the sick in hospitals.

Sister Helen Theresa is survived by nieces and nephews. Preceding her in death were her brothers Louis, James and Bernard and her sister Margaret, all of Missouri, as well as her sister Genevieve (Sister M. Aubert) of the Precious Blood Community.

Internment was in the Salem Heights Cemetery.

Sister Hedwig Mary Stammen (M. Leocadia) August 1920 — February 4, 2013

A Mass of Christian Burial for Precious Blood Sister Hedwig Mary Stammen was held Feb. 7 at the Salem Heights in Dayton. Sister Hedwig, 92, died at Maria Joseph Center in Dayton Feb. 4. She had been a Sister of the Precious Blood for 72 years.

A native of Sharpsburg, Ohio, Sister spent 46

years ministering in food service, mostly at seminaries in Canton, Carthagena and Cincinnati.

Later in life Sister felt a call to in-home care of elderly women in Fort Loramie and Minster, Ohio.

She retired to Salem Heights in 1997, where she enjoyed nature, did beautiful hand work and baked treats for her Sister companions.

Sister Hedwig Mary is survived by her sisters, Bibiana DeWitt, Sylvia Sere and Jovita Broerman.

Internment was in the Salem Heights Cemetery.

For the full texts of the eulogies given at the sisters’ funerals, go to: www.PreciousBloodSistersDayton.org; click on About Us>In Memoriam.

Spring 2013

19

In Memoriam

Sister Canice Werner

Non-Profit Organization U.S. Postage PAID DAYTON, OH Permit No. 966

4000 Denlinger Road Dayton, OH 45426-2399

Water, our precious resource

By Sister Marie Kopin, C.PP.S.

E

astertide — a time of seeing candidates and babies immersed in the Baptismal Waters, and of sprinkling rites.

What a Precious time. Also, we have the Precious Blood and Water of Jesus mentioned in the Scriptures. All of this has me reflecting all the more on our most precious resource of water.

What would life be like if we had no good water available?

I was privileged to attend two workshops with Dr. Bessheen Baker of our Naturopathic Institute here in Mt. Pleasant, Mich.

She spoke at length to us about preserving our water and keeping it pure enough to drink and use with our animals and crops, and of many dangers we face from those who seek profit, and not peaceful living. Toxins do accumulate, so the better the drinking water and the water put on crops, the less the build-up in our bodies.

There is much information about chemicals and toxins more commonly found in our waters today, chemicals which can build up in a number of body organs 20

Sharing & Caring

known to have caused cancer and other diseases. I have witnessed the spraying of Roundup on cornfields in our county in the Central Michigan area.

Later, upon studying the issue further, I found that Roundup and other glyphosate based herbicides, are chemicals used on GMO plants to supposedly prevent weeds from growing.

I saw a film from Argentina showing fields being sprayed the same way without warning.

Roundup is a very toxic substance for humans according to several sources.

A related issue here in Isabella County is ‘Fracking.' We live on the biggest oil field in Michigan and the northeast section of our county has many oil wells. Some people are very fearful because so many kinds of undisclosed chemicals are washed deep into the earth with lots of water, and new compounds are being formed. How will the use of the water and toxic effects of the chemicals impact us? Some are even proposing that fracking can cause earthquakes.

So, what to do? As individuals we can keep abreast of groups

such as Organic Consumers. Letter writing takes time, but to create good laws and to stop hurtful legislation they are necessary; chemical and oil company lobbies are very big and wealthy.

One email newsletter tells of a person in Ohio who sold her farm after a well just five miles away created an oily film on her water which made her too sick to keep up her horse farm.

Another route is to invest in a water purification system. I use an RO unit (Reverse Osmosis).

I found that water from my RO unit had PPM’s (Particles Per Million) within the safe range of 1 to 10 PPM’s, and my tap water from our city had a PPM of 370.

A friend had water from her Brita filter tested with a PPM of 200, so that did some good.

There are numerous water companies who will help you out.

The Owens Company has offices nationwide. Water testing is also available through your local health department and state departments.  This story originally appeared in the Spring issue of the C.PP.S. Environmental Newsletter - reprinted with permission.