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Assumption
BVM, Pulaski, WI
St. John the Baptist, Menasha, WI
St. Peter, Stevens Point, WI
St. Francis of Assisi, Detroit, MI
Sweetest Heart of Mary, Detroit, MI
St. Mary of Perpetual Help, Chicago, IL
St. Mary of the Angels, Green Bay, WI
(Sr. Marcella Wielgus at St. Peter’s, 1910)
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May 20, 1902 |
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On Pentecost Tuesday, then a first
class feast day, 21 Sisters of St. Joseph and candidates of the new
congregation, joined 24 priests, the mayor of Stevens Point, Wisconsin,
and his council, and over 2,000 men, women and children, for the
dedication of “St. Joseph Academy and Convent.” Bishop Messmer of the
Diocese of Green Bay, Wisconsin, blessed the cornerstone of the
congregational home that still graces the 35 acres of land and pine
grove originally purchased by Rev. Luke Pescinski on June 19, 1901, for
the sum of $3500.
Click here to view photograph
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August 12, 1908 |
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Mother
Mary Boleslaus Rybicki was elected Superior General with Sister Damien
Zanowski as
Assistant. Sister Ephrem Welniak, Mothers Mary Felicia Jaskulski and Clara
Bialkowski serve as
councilors. Mother Boleslaus led the congregation in Jesuit spirituality and worked
tirelessly in providing solid education for all the sisters.
Click
here to view photograph
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1916 |
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The headdress worn by the sisters
was modified. The white starched facing
was eliminated, replaced by a simple veil.
Click
here to view photograph
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September 6, 1922 |
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St. Joseph Academy and Boarding School opened in Stevens Point,
Wisconsin. A ninth grade was opened at St. Mary of Perpetual Help in
Chicago, Illinois. These events initiated the ministry of high school
teaching.
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January 2, 1925 |
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The name of the congregation was changed from “Polish Sisters of St.
Joseph” to “Order of the Sisters of St. Joseph.”
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November 8, 1929 |
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St.
Theresa Home in Denver, Colorado, was purchased for the care of sick
sisters. This launched the congregation’s health care ministry and
hospital administration. Over the years, the Sisters of St. Joseph of
the Third Order of St. Francis sponsored eight more health care
facilities:
Click
here to view photograph
River Pines Sanitarium, Stevens Point, Wisconsin, 1938 - 1971
St. Joseph Hospital, Meridian, Mississippi, 1945 - 1979
Sacred Heart Hospital, Loup City, Nebraska, 1945 - 1978
Divine Infant Hospital, Wakefield, Michigan, 1946 - 1979
St. Joseph Hospital of the Plains, Cheyenne Well, Colorado, 1947 - 1987
Marymount Hospital, Garfield Heights, Ohio, 1949 - present
St. Joseph Home and Hospital, River Falls, Wisconsin, 1962 - 1975
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February 2, 1942 |
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Co-foundress
Mother Mary Felicia Jaskulska died in St. Michael Hospital, Stevens
Point, Wisconsin, at the age of 75, following surgery for cancer. She is
remembered for her desire to preserve the Franciscan identity. “She used
her office to call the congregation back to unity in the original
Franciscan grace and spirit. Two important projects toward this end were
publishing the Custom Book and taking the initial steps toward
centralizing the novitiate.” (A Fitting Response, Part II, p. 216)
Click here to view photograph
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July 4-7, 1942 |
During
the Eleventh General Chapter, Mother Mary Virginia Bialozynski was elected Superior General with Sister Dionysia Plucinski as Assistant.
She was the congregation’s first American-born Superior General and
committed to the Franciscan ideal. She authored monthly publications
called “Lift Up Your Hearts” that contained reflections on the
Franciscan way of life.
Click here to view photograph
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October 4, 1942 |
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The Bendix Estate in South Bend,
Indiana, was purchased to serve as the General Motherhouse and Novitiate
of the congregation. The desire of the sisters was to be of one heart
and one mind. The General Motherhouse was a place symbolizing
congregational unity. Bishop Noll of the Diocese of Fort Wayne, Indiana,
gave the blessing, assisted by five monsignori and thirty priests from
Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Ohio and Wisconsin. “Among the guests,”
said the local newspaper, “ were about 100 representatives from a score
of religious communities from those states. Prominent lay people were
also present.”
Click here to view photograph
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December 17, 1949 |
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Mother
Mary Dionysia Plucinski became the Superior General following the death
of Mother Mary Virginia. Her leadership was shaped in particular by three
directives received during her audience with Pope Pius XII in which he
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called upon major superiors to provide for their sisters
professional training equal to that of lay counterparts,
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encouraged major superiors to adapt non-essentials in religious
life so that ancient customs which have no meaning in the current
cultural setting would not be an obstacle to a vocation to religious
life, and
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inject into the life of the sisters the warmth of family affections.
Click
here to view photograph
She dedicated herself to each of
these tasks with unwavering joy. |
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February 8, 1962 |
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The
congregation agreed to staff three schools in Puerto Rico: in Lares,
Jayuya and Quebradillas. This began the congregation’s commitment to
missionary work currently in Puerto Rico, Peru, and Brazil.
Click here to view photograph
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June 29, 1962 |
Mother
Mary Benjamin Golubski was elected Superior General. The 1960s were a time
of great change in the Church and in religious congregations.
Vatican II, the Kennedy assassination, the Viet Nam war, the civil
rights movement, shifts in spiritual awareness, changes in religious
garb ... her gentle spirit provided calm steerage through all the events
of the times. She initiated the Community Self Study and Evaluation,
involving all sisters in prayer, study, and discussion in preparation
for the Renewal Chapter in 1968-69.
Click here to view photograph
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July 1, 1968 |
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The
Sixteenth General Chapter was convened at the General Motherhouse in
South Bend, Indiana and at Regina High School in Harper Woods, Michigan.
Sister Josephine Marie Peplinski was elected Superior General to assume
leadership during a time of profound change. Congregational structures
and systems changed with the expansion of ministry into uncharted areas.
Click here to view photograph
The General Chapter authorized diverse life styles and extended apostolates. The Chapter endorsed the wearing of contemporary clothing
with or without the veil, usually with the congregation’s symbol. They
approved the revised Franciscan Rule entitled “Go To My Brethren” and
the updated constitution of the Sisters of St. Joseph of the Third Order
of St. Francis called “Search.”
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1971 |
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The
“Chapter of Mats” was held in Bartlett, Illinois on March 13-14; in
Stevens Point, Wisconsin on March 27-28; in Garfield Heights, Ohio on
April 3-4; and in Puerto Rico on May 14-16. It was a time for gratefully
recalling the congregation’s past, of deepening consciousness of the
present call and situation, and of increasing hope for the future.
Click here to view photograph
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June 26-July 2, 1976 |
Homecoming
Celebration marked the 75th Jubilee (1901-76) of the founding of the
congregation. All SSJ-TOSFs were invited to come to Stevens Point, Wisconsin, the
“cradle” of the congregation, to experience total community, to recall
their history, to share what being a member means to each sister, and to
recommit themselves to personal, institutional and world renewal.
Click here to view photograph |
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1992 |
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The
Central Board (Srs. Linda Szocik, Joyce
Soukup, Marjorie White and Alice Trebatoski) was elected by the
Twenty-second General Chapter. During their administration, sisters
expanded the ministries of the congregation in the spirit of serving the
minores, the “little ones” who are left behind by society. Sisters are,
even now, involved in The Franciscan Center, Marymount Child Care Center, pastoral
counseling, eldercare, Siena Prints, Eighth Day Center for Justice,
Mission Development Associates, Sophia’s Portico for women’s
spirituality, Center for a Balanced Life for holistic health, Chiara Home
providing respite care, Community Connections of Greater Rice Lake, The
Center for Spirituality, Guest House providing emergency transitional
housing, and myriad other ministries to “undertake those activities
which will promote the material and spiritual development of the human
family.” (Mission Statement of the Sisters of St. Joseph of the Third
Order of St. Francis)
Click here to view photograph
A Fitting Response: The History of the Sisters of St. Joseph of the
Third Order of St. Francis, Part II, The Growth, 1902-1962, is published
with Sister Josephine Marie as author.
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January 26-28, 1996 |
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The
Twenty-third General Chapter charged the new Central Board (Srs. Jeanne
Conzemius, Beth Konkol [until 2000 when Sr. Valerie Kulbacki is elected]
Mary Alice Jarosz and Katherine Wyszynski) to re-evaluate the property
holdings of the congregation. “We accept these homes graciously, as
gifts to be shared with others, but especially those who are poor.” In
this spirit, property holdings are re-aligned or divested in the service
of God’s people.
Click here to view photograph |
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July 1, 2000 |
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 The
Year of Sabbath began in preparation for the 100th Jubilee of the
congregation (1901-2001). Based on Maria Harris’ book Proclaim Jubilee!,
the sisters assembled a book of reflections on the themes of
- Sabbath - “You shall let the land lie fallow, that is,
you shall
practice Sabbath.” Leviticus 25
- Justice - “You shall find what belongs to whom and give it back.”
Leviticus 25:25-27
- Liberation - “You shall free captives and proclaim liberty.” Leviticus
25:9
- Forgiveness - “You shall forgive debts, letting forgiveness in.”
Leviticus 25:54
- Celebration - “You shall hold a great feast, learning to sing the
canticle of
‘jubilate’.” Leviticus 25:8-9
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Forty-six
School Sisters of St. Francis withdrew from their order to form a new
community, now known as the Sisters of St. Joseph of the Third Order of
St. Francis. Their commitment was to “undertake those activities which
will promote the material and spiritual development of the human
family.” (SSJ-TOSF Mission Statement)
There
was a desperate need for the education of immigrant children settling in
the Midwest United States. A Christlike friendship and sisterly reliance
tightly bound the foundresses, Mother Mary Clara Bialkowski and Mother
Mary Felicia Jaskulska. “These two foundresses constituted a twin force
supporting the Christian ideals of love of neighbor and justice.” (50th
Jubilee of the foundresses booklet)
Mother
Mary Clara was appointed as the first Provincial Superior of the
Cleveland Province. She was responsible for the construction of the
congregational home in Garfield Heights, and the building was ready for
occupancy when the province was established.
The Sacred Congregation
authorized
modification of the religious habit, simplifying the veil and the garb.
The change in religious garb signified the more profound changes taking
place in the Church and in religious congregations following Vatican II.
Throughout the decades of the 60s and 70s, the Sisters of St. Joseph of
the Third Order of St. Francis maintained the vision of the foundresses
with a “fitting response” to the needs of the times. They held to the
admonition of St. Francis to his followers: “I have done what was mine
to do. May Christ teach you what is yours.”
The
Constitution and General Directives were approved by Rome. It was the
conclusion of the renewal process started in the 1960s by Mother
Benjamin Golubski.
“You
shall have the trumpet sounded loud ... for it is a Jubilee and it shall
be holy to you!” (Leviticus 25:12a) The congregation was 100 years old.
Over 400 sisters, associates and guests gathered in Stevens Point,
Wisconsin, to commemorate the event. It was a time of unity and joy,
recalling the courage of the foundresses and the sisters who formed the
first nucleus of the congregation in a fitting response to the social
needs of the times.