Soli Deo Gloria

Ursulines ALIVE

Sister Michele Ann was a candidate for the School Sisters of Notre Dame, the community that taught her at St. Aloysius School in St. Louis. But once she met the Ursuline Sisters, her focus changed.

“God just had different plans for me. I am so grateful He did,” Sister Michele Ann said.

She had a unique opportunity in 1992 to return to Missouri to serve at her former school, St. Aloysius. She was a teacher for four years and principal for six more, until the school closed.

“It was a huge dream of mine to teach at the school I attended,” she said. “I became a member of many of the families that I still stay in touch with today.”

Sister Cecelia Joseph also had the opportunity to return to Missouri to minister – three different times.

From 1978-84, she taught at Sacred Heart School in Poplar Bluff. It allowed her to spend time with her mother and be close enough to her siblings to watch her nieces and nephews grow up. In the 1990s, she taught at St. Aloysius with Sister Michele.

Her final service in Missouri was in parish ministry, a mission Ursulines began in 1979. Sister Marie Michael Hayden and then Sister Renee Monaghan (both deceased) served at St. Francis DeSales Parish in Lebanon from 1987-2005. Sister Mary David Thomas served at St. George Parish in Van Buren from 197982, and years later Sister Mary Sheila Higdon – who had taught at Seven Holy Founders for 11 years – returned to Missouri as a parish minister at Dexter, and then from 1999-2011 in Van Buren. (Both Sisters are deceased.) Sister Cecelia Joseph replaced her in that ministry.

“When the diocese wanted to put a church in Van Buren, the town was so anti-Catholic, people wouldn’t even sell them the land,” Sister Cecelia Joseph said. “A parishioner bought it and donated it. I’m sure Sisters Mary David and Mary Sheila helped end that divide, along with the School Sisters of Notre Dame who served there in between. During my time, ministers worked together to serve the town, especially in helping people financially.”

Other Missouri ministries included individual Sisters at schools in Scott City, St. Louis and Pierce City. From 1992-2000, Sister Pam Mueller served at St. Louis University, first as director of the Speech and Hearing Clinic, and then as director of a program offering college courses to high school students.

Ursulines Today

Sister Michele Morek keeps the Ursuline presence alive in Missouri today, although during the Covid pandemic she’s had to work remotely from her home in Kansas. She came to Missouri after five years as coalition coordinator for UNANIMA International in New York City.

“I have always enjoyed getting to know a new place, and soon after I got here, I checked out some books on the geology and history of Kansas City,” she said. “I love that you can drive quickly to the Tall Grass Prairie, and that you can be driving down a street and see a street sign that says, ‘The Santa Fe Trail Crossed Here.’”

While serving in elected office, Sister Michele visited Glennonville and Van Buren and loved both.

“I love rural people and have found there is more distinction between rural/city than there is between city to city,” she said. “But people are people – most of the people here are from or connected with rural areas.”

The other connection they have is that at some time, they’ve likely been influenced by the Ursuline Sisters.u

Sister Mary McDermott, left, who is from Missouri, visits with Sister Mary Sheila Higdon, who ministered in Missouri, in 2012.

Soli Deo Gloria We rejoice in the gifts of our sisters, given for the kingdom of God.

Five Ursuline Sisters began 2021 with new ministries. Sister Alicia Coomes, who has served as director of Local Community Life at the Motherhouse since 2018, is now the director of Nursing in Saint Joseph Villa at the Mount. She replaces lay staff in that role. Sister Alicia previously served 14 years in nursing at the Mount, then served in parish and vocation ministry. Sister Suzanne Sims replaces Sister Alicia as director of Local Community Life. She most recently served as director of Faith Formation at St. Pius Tenth Church in Owensboro, Ky., since December 2016. In her new role she is responsible for the needs of the Sisters living at the Motherhouse. Sister Michele Ann Intravia is the agency director for the Catholic Charities office in Tell City, Ind. The Tell City branch is one of five Catholic Charities offices throughout the Archdiocese of Indianapolis. Sister Michele most recently served at the Sister Visitor Center in Louisville.