Seven sisters celebrate Jubilee of Monastic Profession.
On Sunday, October 29, seven of the Sisters of St. Benedict in Ferdinand, Indiana celebrated Jubilees of Monastic Profession at Monastery Immaculate Conception. Sister Geneva Stumler celebrated the seventieth anniversary of her Monastic Professions, while Sisters Dorothy Graf, Mary Judith Fleig, Elnora Shidler, Mary Ann Verkamp, Anna Marie Brosmer, and Mary Philip Berger all celebrated the sixtieth anniversary of their Monastic Professions at a Jubilee Mass of Thanksgiving at Monastery Immaculate Conception in Ferdinand.
From Starlight, Indiana, Sister Geneva Stumler has a Master’s degree in English and had a 33-year teaching career, teaching kindergarten through eighth grade at Holy Rosary, Holy Spirit, St. Theresa, St. Henry, and St. Phillip and in Rockport, Huntingburg, Jasper, and Dubois. She currently serves in the monastery’s prayer ministry.
Sister Dorothy Graf came to Ferdinand from Sellersburg, Indiana. She earned a Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education from St. Benedict College, a Master’s degree in Reading Clinician from Cardinal Stritch College in Milwaukee, and a Specialist Degree in Educational Administration and Supervision from Indiana State University. She taught at Nativity Grade School in Evansville and Celestine Grade School in the Northeast Dubois County School Corporation, then served as Principal for Dubois Middle School, as Administrator, Assistant Superintendent, and Principal at Celestine Grade School, and as Title I Coordinator, ISTEP Test Coordinator, Transportation Director, and Public Relations for Northeast Dubois County School Corporation. Following a sabbatical at the School of Applied Theology, Oakland, California, she currently serves as Hospital Chaplain at St. Francis Hospital in Indianapolis.
A native of Ferdinand, Indiana, Sister Mary Judith Fleig earned a Bachelor’s degree from St. Benedict College and studied Benedictine studies at St. John’s in Collegeville, Minnesota. She taught business classes for 6 years at Mater Dei High School and spent 26 years as a missionary in Guatemala. She currently serves as a translator for Dubois County Courts and Southern Hills, and in Mission Advancement at the monastery.
From Orlando, Florida, Sister Elnora Shidler spent many years working in education. She taught and worked in the library at St. Thomas School in Vincennes, Indiana, and at St. Mary School in Washington, Indiana. She was also a librarian and part-time volunteer at Holy Family School in Jasper, Indiana. She has served at the monastery in the stitching room and as a chauffeur, and currently serves in the monastery’s prayer ministry.
Hailing from Huntingburg, Indiana, Sister Mary Ann Verkamp earned her Bachelor’s degree in Social Studies from the College of St. Scholastica in Duluth, Minnesota. She taught at Mater Dei in Evansville, Indiana for three years, then spent the next 26 as a Guatemala missionary. She currently serves as the monastery librarian and on the sacristan team.
Sister Anna Marie Brosmer grew up between Birdseye and Celestine, Indiana. She put her nursing education to work for 30 years at St. Joseph Hospital, Huntingburg Clinic, and St. Ann’s Nursing Home in Huntingburg, Indiana. She spent another 29 years serving in health care at the monastery in Ferdinand, as well as volunteer work for drug and alcohol addictions and recovery. She was a night nurse for many years in the monastery’s Hildegard Health Center, and currently serves in Scenic Hills Personal Care.
Sister Mary Philip Berger is from South Bend, Indiana, earning her Bachelor’s degree from Mount St. Scholastica, and a Master’s from Notre Dame Avignon. She served as a teacher at St. Mary’s, Washington, Marian Heights Academy, and at Brescia University. She currently serves in the monastery’s prayer ministry.