When and where were you born?
I was born at Deaconess Hospital in Cleveland , Ohio , on January 25 th , 1940.
Tell me about your “growing up” years.
They were wonderful.
We lived in a double house that my mother's parents owned on Mapledale Avenue in Cleveland . We lived upstairs and my mother's twin sister's family lived downstairs. There was a big back yard, so my uncle did a lot of gardening. He taught me gardening, and how to fish, too.
I could walk to my other grandma's too. When I was coming home from school, I'd detour to her house to practice piano. I used to ‘con' my friends into coming with me by telling them they could eat grandma's pastries while I practiced. [Laughs] The reason I'm not a great concert pianist today is that I practiced piano only as long as it took them to eat up the pastry.
The two boys who lived next door were like brothers…We rode our bikes in the neighborhood and, since we lived within walking distance of the Cleveland Zoo, we would go there all the time and climb the shale cliffs and watch the polar bears. That was way before you had to pay admission to the zoo.
We were always doing all sorts of plays. I remember, around third or fourth grade, all the kids from the neighborhood did a play about the Rice Crispy [cereal] characters, Snap, Crackle and Pop. All the neighbors came.
I had the best of both worlds because my grandparents on my dad's side had a farm in Vermilion. When I visited them, I drove a tractor and helped harvest grain and fed cattle and rode horses. [Laughs] Back then, we didn't go ‘away' for vacations, we went out to the farm.
You came of age in the shadow of “the bomb” and the Korean War. What part do you think that played in shaping the person you are today?
Actually, I remember a little about World War II. My father was a neighborhood air raid warden – going around to make sure all the lights were out and windows were covered. My mother's brother came home [from the war] with a Purple Heart, and I heard stories about the war and patriotism. And I remember [news]papers reporting on the Korean War. But I don't remember that much about it. Maybe because I didn't have that much of personal connection.
What I do remember is the Vietnam War and what was happening in that context, especially the protests and the shootings [in 1970] on the Kent State Campus. That's the period when I really became politically aware and where my peace leanings were shaped.
What other things shaped who you are today?
My parents. My mother worked for the County Prosecutor , so I was very aware of what was going on (politically and legally) in Cleveland …My father got his law degree late in life. They definitely ‘stood' for what was right and good.
When did you know you wanted to devote your life to service in the Sisters of the Humility of Mary order? And what do you think led to that decision?
I trace my decision back to having ‘solitude' time, reflection time. When I'd be walking to school, or fishing, or walking to Mass in the morning – in my own, young way – I'd commune with God. Also, my parents' and grandma's faith had a lot to do with my decision.
When I was in high school [ Villa Maria High School , a boarding school in Villa Maria , Pennsylvania ] I learned about various religious communities. But it wasn't until my senior year in, during a January retreat, that I decided I wanted to devote my life to God.
I didn't tell my parents until March. That day, I'd taken the SAT exam and an achievement exam – in Latin – at Case Western Reserve University . When I came home my dad asked me when I was going to start writing application letters for college scholarships and I told him I wasn't going to college, that I was going to become a sister. He went into the kitchen and asked my mother if she knew I was interested in becoming a sister. She said: “Yes. Didn't you?”
The summer I graduated from high school I wrote a letter to the Sisters of the Humility of Mary Community asking for an appointment. In the fall, I took some classes at Ursuline College , and in January [of 1959] I entered the Sisters of Humility of Mary Community in Villa Maria, Pennsylvania .
Was it hard to make the decision to become a sister?
It seemed a natural and wonderful thing to me. I wanted to spend my life telling others how loved we are by the Divine. Fifty years later I know I've made the right decision, though I know it was a little sorrowful for my parents. I'm an only child, so my parent's weren't going to have any grandchildren. But they were both supportive.
There were many directions you could have taken in the order. What led you to choose education?
I entered so long ago that I didn't directly choose what I did. The community chose for me, after getting to know me. I was a postulate for about 6 months and then a novice – learning the life – for about two years.
The community decided according to need. The usual avenues were education, nursing and social work, and with the educational needs the community knew it was going to have, I was asked to be an English and math teacher. Since I already had college credits in Latin, they added that, too….[Chuckles] The theme of one of my college papers was pi verses poetry.
Do I have any regrets? No. As I've moved along the educational continuum I've found myself drawn to literature and poetry and fiction and short story writing. Somehow, I think that choice – to have me teach English – was almost prophetic.
You were a classroom teacher for 27 years ('64-'91). What were your favorite subjects to teach, and why those subjects?
I liked teaching math and Latin. I loved teaching literature – especially dramatic literature – because of the delight of discovery by the students as we critiqued a story or play or as a plot unfolded and they began to use their creativity to understand, to interpret, to grow. And I loved when the students could perform and dramatize things – be on their feet doing scenes from Shakespeare or Shakespearian sonnets or creative dramatic things.
You started out as a teacher at Magnificat in 1964. Today you are the school's Vice President of Mission . When did you assume that title, and what do you do?
I'd been Director of Mission and this year I assumed a new title when the administration was redesigned. I think the title change was symbolic, to indicate how important the role is.…As the Vice President of Mission, my role is to ensure that every decision we make and everything we do is grounded in our mission to educate young women holistically to learn, lead and serve in the spirit of Mary's Magnificat . That's the prayer of Mary, the mother of Jesus, in Luke's gosphel.
Another part of my role is to orient new members of the Board and new members to the faculty and staff in the history and heritage of the school and the history and heritage of the Sisters of the Humility of Mary.
In your 35 years at the school, how has it changed? And how has it stayed the same?
We had a speaker – an alum – come in to get a feel for the school before she was gave the graduation address. When she walked in the door, she said it has the same feeling.
When the school started [in 1959], there were 37 or 38 sisters on the staff. And we took a lot of things for granted: that we were a Catholic school, that we were a college preparatory school. We are still a Catholic school and we are still a college preparatory school, but now there are three sisters on the staff.
The focus on achievement has stayed the same, but the curriculum has changed and evolved, according to the needs of society and the times. We've just added Arabic and Chinese and environmental science classes.
And we've evolved, too, to meet the needs of the church. More and more it is clear that our girls will be leaders in the church. So we teach them about service as a relational activity and we train them – here and through [off-campus] retreats – to be leaders.
In your 35 years at the school, how have you changed and how have you stayed the same?
[Chuckles] That's a good question. Very early on I became conscious that I was learning from my students. And I became more professionally mature about recognizing how different some of the students were, too. They weren't all going to learn the way I did, so – and I say this humbly – I had to change my methodology, mix things up and use different [educational] methodologies and the expertise of others. [Chuckles] And on top of all that, there were the challenges of the electronic age.
One other change is that I used to think I had to do it all. Now my role is to empower others, to undergird others, to ‘do.'
Since there are so many factors affecting our students, they have changed, too.
And how did I stay the same? I've become more fervent in my devotion to the girls and the school and community. I became more and more of a learner, not only as I taught, but as I moved into other areas, too…My enthusiasm for the whole enterprise – the teaching, the girls, the school – it's never waivered. [Chuckles] Being connected with the students has always been important. I think that's one of the thing's that's kept me young.
What's the most important life-lesson you've learned in your years at Magnificat?
That what you get on the surface is not the whole story, and that's whether it's a student or an adult. In other words, the surface is just the beginning of the whole story.
At 69 – when most people are retired – you're putting in a full day's work at Magnificat. How do you do it?
I have to say it's a gift to have the health I have and the energy I have. My parents are certainly an influence there, both in terms of genetics and being good moral and personality influences. My father was interested in everything. My mother was a devoted friend and employee and a very responsible person. That kind of ‘modeling' was just something I imbibed growing up.
What keeps you so professionally engaged?
I'm committed to a ‘cause,' and that ‘cause' is the students. I want to enrich their lives, their souls, and their personalities, and prepare them to succeed in their future. They are going to be the ones transforming the world.
You are in good physical shape. What are you doing to keep fit?
I'm doing a lot of walking. I walk to the lake from my place whenever I can and I walk in the MetroParks, too. And I eat heartily, and healthily. We are blessed in the US – and Ohio – that we have such abundance.
And I keep my medical and dental and eye appointments – faithfully! It's a headache to do, especially when I'm so busy, but I know it's important. I had breast cancer in 1993, with surgery and radiation, and I had a recurrence, with surgery in 2000, so I definitely believe in following doctors' orders and consciously attending to your own health care needs. All those regular check-ups and doctors' visits are preventative.
What's your definition of, and criteria for, successful aging?
Have a positive attitude and appreciate everything as a gift. I'm realistic, I see all the problems we have in the world, but when I get down or a little oppressed – I never get depressed – I still tend to see hope for the world and the goodness that is there in the world… The goodness of people is a power, and I really believe in it.
And live in the moment. When you live in the moment and when you see everything – gestures, words, smiles – as a gift, you are uplifted. You experience a sense of gratitude and you find yourself.
And I absolutely believe in staying in touch with friends. I have great friends. They are nurturing and supportive and I can share my heart – the good news and the hardships – with them. And I belong to the Sisters of the Humility of Mary,…Imagine having 177 sisters, when you were an only child. I can call on them at any time.
And I believe in getting outside as much as possible. I think nature is healing. That's one of the reasons we have our students visiting several nursing homes in the area and taking residents – in their wheelchairs – outside.
What place do you think spirituality plays in successful aging?
It's the heart of it. It enables you to make choices, because you can't do everything. It shows you what is really meaningful, what you can do to uplift others, and what you can do for the good of the earth and the world.
Spirituality means searching your heart for the truth, searching yourself for the simple things you can do and be, and believing that the simple things – such as silent support of others – count. It means finding the meaning and value in things, which leads to an intuitive sense that there is hope, and a future, and that there is more than meets the eye.
Spirituality requires prayer and discernment and quietness and letting go and being open so you can reach a still point where you can hear God, so you can know what God wants you to do, how God wants to use you.
What did I not ask that I should have?
About the elderly people in my life that I've admired. My mother lived to 93 and was interested in everyone. There are sisters – in their 80s and 90s – who have retired to the Villa [Maria Community in Pennsylvania ]. Even though they can't teach any more they remain open to things and engaged in the mission, in teaching, in the future of students, in what I tend to call ‘the political arena.' They are all my role models, and I realize that I'm lucky to have such a number of people that have showed me things.
As we sit here talking about this, I realize that I'm nothing but blessed.
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