Stories & News
Meet some of the men and women who benefit from the Retirement Fund for Religious.
Sister Theresa Hathaway, SSMO, 88
“I didn’t want to become a nun at all,” says Sister Theresa Hathaway, a member of the Sisters of St. Mary of Oregon. “I can only think that Jesus gave me a push!”
Sister Elizabeth Sohler is a member of the Sisters of St. Mary of Oregon (SSMO). Her parish was a small mission, where the SSMO sisters taught catechism after Mass on Sundays. “Our faith was important to our family,” she recalls.
Sister Elizabeth, born in 1931 in North Plains, Oregon, attended a one-room public school for the first six grades. At the age of 14, she attended St. Mary of the Valley High School as a resident student. “There I saw the SSMO sisters daily,” she says, “and observed their way of life.
“I became a postulant on January 1, 1950, and was received as a novice on August 15 of the same year—during my senior year of high school,” she relates. Sister Elizabeth made her first vows in 1952. She took courses at a nearby college to obtain a bachelor’s degree in education. Being a pianist, her first teaching assignments were in music, after which she taught the primary grades for several years.
Sister Elizabeth transitioned from teaching and served at Maryville, a skilled-care facility established by the Sisters of St. Mary of Oregon. She ministered as a bookkeeper in the business office for 27 years. “Maryville,” she says, “was a friendly place; we were family.”
Since retiring, Sister Elizabeth has remained very active with a host of volunteer ministries, including working in her community’s archives with her biological sister, Sister Angeline. “We gather the history of the community to share with the sisters,” she explains. She also works outside, especially in the flower gardens.
Sister Elizabeth has been a Sister of St. Mary of Oregon for 71 years. “There is always God’s work to do in some way,” she says.
Sister Ursula Marie George, OSU, 95
“I have been devoted to [Saint] Martin de Porres since I was a child,” says Sister Ursula Marie George, who has been a member of the Ursuline Sisters of Cleveland for 75 years. “His simple lifestyle inspired me.”
Born in 1926, Sister Ursula Marie was also inspired and nurtured by her parents’ deep faith. “My mother was very holy,” she says. “And I remember that every day before work, my father would kneel down in the living room to say his morning prayers.”
“During the war [World War II], I had two brothers who were serving. Every night our family said a rosary for their safety and for all service men.”
During the primary grades, Sister Ursula Marie was educated by members of what became her religious community. Her fourth-grade teacher, Sister Dominica, made a lasting impression. “All the children loved her,” says Sister Ursula Marie. “She was just such a fun teacher. In the spring, I would bring her pussy willows from our garden, and she would be so delighted.”
After graduating from high school, Sister Ursula Marie worked at Richmond Brothers, a clothing manufacturer in Cleveland. By then, Sister Dominica was teaching in a school close to the factory. “One day, I surprised her with a big bunch of pussy willows,” she says. “During the visit, I told her that I was thinking of becoming a missionary. She encouraged me to speak with Mother Marie Sands, the Ursulines’ superior. Mother Marie explained how I could serve needy children right here, through teaching.”
Sister Ursula Marie entered her community in September of 1946. She began teaching shortly thereafter, while at the same time pursuing her bachelor’s degree at nearby St. John College. “They needed teachers,” she says. “So, we would go to school on Saturdays and in the summer.”
She taught for a total of 44 years in 10 different schools in the Diocese of Cleveland. She particularly enjoyed preparing students for First Holy Communion. “It was a very special time for them,” she recalls. “It was the first time they were going to receive Jesus.”
After retiring from teaching, she spent another 23 years in various forms of ministry, including providing clerical support to a sister who served as an educational consultant. For 20 years, the two were engaged in creating SciTT (Science for Today and Tomorrow) Kits, which provided elementary schools with lesson plans and related activities for science.
While officially “retired,” Sister Ursula Marie continues to serve in various volunteer ministries. She also continues her devotion to St. Martin de Porres. “When I entered the Ursulines, one of the sisters gave me an old statue,” she explains. “My mother painted it to look like St. Martin de Porres. I’ve broken that statue a few times over the years, but I always put it back together. I call on him every evening in my prayers.”
Sister Mary Guadalupe Jumarang, OSF, 75
“I never thought I would be a sister,” says Sister Guadalupe Jumarang, a member of the Franciscan Sisters of Our Lady of Sorrows in Beaverton, Oregon. “I had boyfriends; I was even engaged to be married at one point. These were good men, but I didn’t choose that life. Jesus had plans for me.”
Born in 1946, Sister Guadalupe grew up primarily in the Philippine Province of Laguna. There, she attended Catholic schools and received her BS in education from Laguna College. Upon graduation, she taught at a nearby school for 12 years before transitioning to teaching positions that took her first to Manila, then to Nigeria, and later, Greece.
In 1990, she moved to Canada, where she continued to teach and was active in her local parish. By chance, she was at a Mass attended by several members of what is now her religious community. Two of the sisters were also from the Philippines, and Sister Guadalupe felt an immediate connection to the group. Following this initial meeting, Sister Guadalupe began to receive nightly phone calls from one of the sisters. “She would say, ‘You should come join us,’ and she encouraged me to pray,” recalls Sister Guadalupe. “The priest at my parish and my friends also recognized that I had a vocation.”
In 2000, Sister Guadalupe entered her community at the provincial house in Beaverton. After three years of formation, she professed first vows. She returned to Canada, where her community has a house. For the next 15 years, she served as a pastoral associate and as the spiritual director for the local Legion of Mary group. (The Legion of Mary is the largest lay apostolic organization in the Catholic Church.)
In 2015, she returned to the United States to serve as the local superior of Our Lady of Peace, one of two retreat centers run by her community. In late 2019, Sister Guadalupe suffered a serious fall that broke several vertebrae and injured her spinal cord. She spent six months in the hospital. Despite the severity of her injury, she is now able to walk, which her neurosurgeon says is a miracle.
As Sister Guadalupe continues to recover, she remains active with the Legion of Mary, and she trusts in the will of God. “One thing in my life is that I really pray hard,” she says. “I got this from my mom, who was very devout. From a young age, I would pray with her. In my prayer and meditation, I keep asking Jesus, ‘What else would you like me to do?’”