DAVENPORT — The Congregation of the Humility of Mary (CHM) will celebrate the jubilees of CHM sisters and associates with a Mass on June 25 at 2 p.m. in Christ the King Chapel on the St. Ambrose University campus. Msgr. Francis Henricksen will be the celebrant.
Sisters living at Bishop Drumm Retirement Center in Johnston, Iowa, who are unable to travel will celebrate their jubilees at Our Lady of Peace Chapel at Bishop Drumm on Sept. 24 at 2:15 p.m.
The following sisters and associates will celebrate significant jubilees:
80 years
Sister Ruth Morris was born in South Dakota and entered the Congregation of the Humility of Mary in 1937 and pronounced her first vows in 1941.
She received a bachelor’s degree in science from Marycrest College in Davenport and a master’s in science from Marquette University in Milwaukee. She served as a teacher in Iowa at Lenihan High School in Marshalltown and Indian Hills Community College in Ottumwa. She also taught at Bourgade High School in Phoenix, and at Illinois State University in Normal, Ill. Sr. Morris taught at a girls’ high school as a Peace Corp volunteer in Ghana, Africa, and at the Rainbow Literacy Center in Canton, Miss. She is now retired and lives at Bishop Drumm Retirement Center where she continues to minister through prayer and witness.
70 years
Sister Donna Schmitt (Sister M. Angelita) was born in Des Moines and entered the Congregation of the Humility of Mary in 1947 and professed her first vows in 1950.
She attended Ottumwa Heights College in Ottumwa and received an associate’s degree in elementary education. She received bachelor degrees in elementary education and English from Marycrest College in Davenport and a master’s in science education from the University of Wisconsin. Sr. Schmitt’s ministry of teaching began at St. Austin in Minneapolis. She taught in Iowa in elementary schools in Melrose, Ottumwa, Oskaloosa, Marshalltown, and at Sacred Heart and St. Theresa Schools in Des Moines.
In 1986 Sr. Schmitt moved to Davenport where she coordinated Seeds of Hope, a Humility of Mary volunteer program, and served as coordinator of Humility of Mary Center. In 1991, while continuing with the Seeds of Hope program, she returned to Des Moines to serve as apartment manager for Anawim Housing. She was a member of New Hope, an experimental community consisting of a group of sisters and volunteers active in a variety of ministries in the RiverBend neighborhood of Des Moines. Sr. Schmitt especially enjoyed sharing art activities with children and adults and working with a federal program that provided employment for individuals with developmental disabilities. Now retired and living in Davenport at Humility of Mary Center, she volunteers and is active in a ministry of prayer and witness.
60 years
• A native of Perry, Iowa, Sister Mary Ann Aman (M. Doreen) entered the Congregation of the Humility of Mary in 1957. She pronounced first vows in 1960.
She received an associate’s degree in elementary education from Ottumwa Heights College and a bachelor’s degree in elementary education from Marycrest College. She received a professional ministries deacon certificate from the Diocese of Tyler, Texas. Sr. Aman had a ministry of teaching in Iowa at St. Patrick, Sacred Heart and St. Mary in Ottumwa; St. Mary-Centerville; St. Alphonsus-Davenport; Lourdes Memorial School-Bettendorf; St. Theresa-Des Moines; and St. Mary-Albia. In Omaha, she served the Omaha Archdiocese Department of Education in media resources and taught religious education at St. Pius X. Sr. Aman served as director of religious education at St. Therese Parish-Des Moines; Sacred Heart Parish-Nacogdoches; Texas; St. Mary Parish-Longview, Texas; St. Thomas Aquinas-Ames, Iowa; and St. Joseph Parish-State Center, Iowa. She resides at Bishop Drumm Retirement Center where she is active in a ministry of prayer and witness.
• Sister Catherine Burns (Sister Mary Cornelius) was born in Williamsburg and entered the Congregation of the Humility of Mary in 1957 and made her first vows in 1960.
She studied education at Ottumwa Heights College and received her bachelor’s degree in English from Marycrest College. She received a master’s degree in library science from Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo and a master’s in pastoral studies from St. Paul University in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Sr. Burns had a library ministry in Iowa at Marycrest College; Lenihan High School-Marshalltown; and Marquette High School-West Point. She also served at St. Phillip Media Center-Battle Creek, Mich.; did parish ministry at Sacred Heart Parish-Kimberley, British Columbia, Canada; and St. Nicholas Parish-Rupert, Idaho. She ministered at Center for Aging Services, Inc., in Davenport as a case worker and receptionist at the Kahl Home. Sr. Burns resides in Davenport where she does hospital volunteer work and is active in a ministry of prayer and witness.
• Sister Micheline Curtis was born in Iowa City and entered the Congregation of the Humility of Mary in 1957. Her first vows were pronounced in 1960.
She earned an associate’s degree from Ottumwa Heights College and a bachelor’s degree in English at Marycrest College. She later received a certificate in Family Intervention/Chemical Dependency from the Johnson Institute in St. Paul, Minn. Sr. Curtis’ ministry of teaching in Iowa led her to St. Mary-Ottumwa, St. Albert High School-Council Bluffs; and Regina High School-Iowa City. She taught in Illinois at St. Pius X-Rock Island and Montini High School-Lombard. She also taught at Bourgade High School-Phoenix; and served as an intervention counselor at Hinsdale Hospital-Hinsdale, Ill. She served as the archival assistant for the Congregation of the Humility of Mary until retiring to Bishop Drumm Retirement Center where she is active in a ministry of prayer and witness.
• A native of Des Moines, Iowa, Sister Elaine Hagedorn (Sister Marie Paul) entered the Congregation of the Humility of Mary in 1957. Her first vows were pronounced in 1960.
She studied elementary education at Ottumwa Heights College and received her bachelor’s degree from Marycrest College. Sr. Hagerdorn taught in the Iowa schools of St. Mary and St. Patrick-Ottumwa; St. Joseph-Dunlap; and St. Mary School-Marshalltown where she also served as principal. In Des Moines, Sr. Hagedorn served as the area coordinator in the diocesan Social Action office and delivered meals through the Homemaker Service. She served as pastoral minister and director of religious education at Visitation Parish. She lives in Des Moines and is actively involved in peace and justice efforts including the Des Moines Ecumenical Committee for Peace and is a board member of the Catholic Peace Ministry.
• Born in Mexico City, Mexico, Sister Luz María Orozco y Aragón entered the Congregation of the Humility of Mary in 1957 and made her first vows in 1960.
She received a bachelor’s degree in French and English from Marycrest College, a master’s in English from Marquette University-Milwaukee, and a Ph.D. in comparative literature from the University of Minnesota-Minneapolis. She received a Danforth Grant to pursue doctoral studies, and as a Fulbright scholar conducted literary research at Oxford University in England. Sr. Orozco’s ministry of teaching took her to Marycrest/Teikyo Marycrest University/Marycrest International University. She has been a visiting professor in the English department at several colleges and universities including Yale University in New Haven, Conn. She received the Teaching Excellence Award from the Independent Higher Education Foundation. She served as a translator, proofreader, editor and writer for several organizations and volunteered as a substitute teacher in Spanish at Assumption High School in Davenport. She lives at the Humility of Mary Center in Davenport where she has the privileged position of jester.
• Sister Marilyn Schierbrock (Sister Regina Marie) grew up in Neola, Iowa, and entered the Congregation of the Humility of Mary in 1957. Her first vows were pronounced in 1960.
She received a bachelor’s degree in elementary education from Marycrest College and a master’s in religious education from Loyola University-Chicago. Sr. Schierbrock’s ministry of teaching in Iowa took place at St. Anthony-Des Moines; St. Mary-Marshalltown; and Sacred Heart-West Des Moines. She was director of religious education in Iowa at Sacred Heart-West Des Moines; Our Lady of Lourdes-Bettendorf; and in the Iowa City vicariate. In Mount Pleasant, Sr. Schierbrock was pastoral minister at St. Alphonsus Parish. For many years she was a neighborhood advocacy coordinator for John Lewis Community Service in Davenport. She now lives at Bishop Drumm Retirement Center where she is active in a ministry of prayer and witness.
• Sister Catherine Talarico (Sister Peter Marie) was born in Des Moines and entered the Congregation of the Humility of Mary in 1957 and made final profession in 1963.
She received her bachelor’s degree in elementary education from Marycrest College. She began her first career as a teacher. Her ministry took her to St. Mary School-Albia; Lourdes Memorial-Bettendorf; St. Austin-Minneapolis; Sacred Heart-West Des Moines; St. Mary-Ottumwa; and St. Theresa and St. Pius in Des Moines. Following the directives of the Second Vatican Council to minister to adults, Sr. Talarico pursued her second ministry career serving as pastoral minister in Assumption Parish-Granger and St. Mary of Nazareth Parish-Des Moines. Her third ministerial call was to work with people dealing with housing issues as well as mental health/substance abuse issues at Anawim Housing. She served as Shelter Plus Care director. Sr. Talarico ministered at the Broadlawns PATH program in Des Moines as a holistic health coordinator until her retirement in 2015. She is retired and lives in Des Moines where she volunteers with homeless veterans and with women at Iowa Correctional Institution for Women. She is involved with other justice issues as well.
25 years
Sister Lillian Stevens was born in Missoula, Mont., and entered the Congregation of the Humility of Mary in 1992. Her first vows were pronounced in 1995.
She studied bookkeeping and accounting through the National Radio Institute school program. She was a bookkeeper and secretary for the Alzheimer’s Association-Rock Island, Ill., and worked as a secretary in Davenport at Churches United, Center for Aging Services, Inc., and the Friendly House. From 2008-2015 she worked at Bishop Drumm Retirement Center-Johnston — first as assistant, then as the CHM sister coordinator. She currently resides at Humility of Mary Center-Davenport, where she is active in a ministry of volunteerism and prayer.
Associates
25 years
Margaret Halvorson
Veronica Munyon
Mary Rickl
CHM associates are men and women of all faiths called to live the CHM mission without vows and within the context of their contemporary lives. They choose to deepen their baptismal call through prayer, service and community in the spirit of the congregation’s founders. The purpose is mutual enrichment and sharing of energy, insight and inspiration.
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