Using One’s Hands to Create and Meditate

She turned to a long-time hobby, the tooling of leather, not long after the sudden death of her dear friend, Sister Phyllis Gembarosky. It was a way to work through the grief and to make something beautiful.

She moved into the craft room at St. Louise Convent in the corner where Sister Phyllis had made her own colorful painting creations. pounding of designs into the leather is a meditation after days spent caring for others living on St. Louise campus.

In this room, Corrine Giel, SCN, finds comfort and inspiration, playing her favorite music, and plying leather to create pieces to be given away as gifts. The feel of the leather, the careful and methodical laying out of an idea and then translating it into something real through the The Director of Pittsburgh Campus Services for 13 years, Sister Corrine was an educator much of her life both as a teacher and principal. It was after many years as an educator and principal that she picked back up the art form that she had first learned as a high school junior.

She learned crafting in leather at Vincentian High School in 1958 from two Sisters, Ann Horvat, SCN, and her art teacher, Charlotte Gambol, SCN.

Like so many Sisters, Sister Corrine has touched countless lives in multiple ministries. In the classroom from 1963 to 1983, she especially enjoyed teaching junior high students in the Pittsburgh area at St. Sebastian School, St. Robert Bellarmine School, St. Agnes School and at St. Andrew School in Welland, Ontario, Canada.

During the time that she was in Welland, when not in the classroom, she honed her leather crafting skills enough to teach leather tooling at the Tandy Leather Store in St. Catherine’s Ontario, Canada.

From 1983 to 2005, she was the principal of an elementary school, Holy Rosary School (HRS) in Republic, Pennsylvania. Holy Rosary students, staff, parents, and parishioners hold a very special place in her heart. She stays in touch with many students and families. Fayette County, where Holy Rosary School was located, presented many and varied challenges due to socioeconomic problems in the area. The staff goal was to give the students a wonderful safe learning environment for the six hours they spent at HRS. The school was staffed by many Sisters from Pittsburgh from 1924 to its closing in 2005.

These days, above her desk on the bulletin board in her office, she has pictures of former students. Some who have passed away, some far too young. She prays for them and remembers them. She recalls those who were pupils in her classrooms, keeping in touch over the years, being of comfort during times of sadness and joy.

A native of Pittsburgh, Sister Corrine grew up a very short drive from St. Louise Convent. “I have so many happy memories there as do many Sisters who were ‘adopted’ by my family,” says Sister.

As a student, Sister Corrine fell in love with leatherwork and it still amazes her that, after all these years, creating something from a piece of tanned cowhide continues to bring her such joy and peace. It is especially wonderful that this craft helps to create long-lasting gifts. Sister describes leather tooling as a great stress reliever as a rawhide mallet is used to pound a variety of leather stamping tools to create something from a blank piece of leather. She has created bible covers, belts, wallets, key fobs, pictures, gun slings, and even a hunting rifle case. A few years ago, Sister Corrine was able to find a group of likeminded leather enthusiasts in Greensburg, about an hour drive from Pittsburgh. The group, The Pitt Pounders, consists of women and men who meet monthly to share ideas, patterns, and leather skills. Although the group has not met for a year, due to the pandemic, they have kept in contact and look forward to being able to reconnect and continue to hone their leather tooling skills. This group is associated with the International Federation of Leather Guild. Sister has been able to attend one of the International shows. Recently, Sister Corrine has had more time to devote to creating a leather wallet for each of the women and a belt for each man whom she worked very closely with at St. Louise Convent. As she finishes each work of art, she prays for the person to whom it will be given. She talks of how beautiful it is to see a shape in the leather and to see the smile on someone’s face when they receive the item made especially for them.

Reflecting on leather tooling and life as a Sister, she shares that she sees many parallels. “Before anything can be done to the leather, it must be prepared through several steps, just as in life, one has to be ready to receive the pattern that God has planned for someone. Once the pattern is traced, it must be cut into the leather, to have the pattern of Vincent and Louise cut into one’s self indeed changes a person. After cutting the pattern, the beveling and pounding, the design begins to take place. Finally, once all the tooling and honing and the picture takes place, the final step is the decorative cuts. Life surely offers many twists and turns and even many cuts to become the person that God designs for each of us.”

Daily, Sister Corrine experiences God in the quiet moments, whether it is in Chapel, or caring for other Sisters, or in her workshop where she gets lost in pulling an image from the leather.