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I was born on January 11th 1946 at Grand Calumet, a beautiful island located in the Ottawa River valley of western Quebec. My mother delivered me safely on that cold, winter, early morning with the help of an elderly midwife who assisted many women on that island with the birthing of their babies. I lived there until the age of two at which time my parents moved to the small mainland town of Campbell’s Bay where I lived until the age of seventeen. It was there that I first came to know the Sisters of St. Joseph, who had a convent in that community along the Ottawa River. They taught me from the first grade through to my graduation from high school, followed by Teachers’ College in Chapeau Quebec. These dedicated and gifted women were role models extraordinaire and I went on to have a long and rewarding career. Thus began the deep connection that set the foundation for my becoming an Associate of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Pembroke. I recently moved from the city of Ottawa to my roots and now reside on the beautiful island of Allumette located west of where I was born and across the Ottawa River from Pembroke. I have lived near this ancient river for most of my life. I have drank its water. I have walked beside it. I have waded in it, canoed it, boated on it, fished its depths, swam along its shores, and skated on its frozen surface. The river is a part of who I am. I know its strength, its beauty, its ruggedness, its calmness and the power of its white water rapids. I am certain that because of these experiences on and near the river I have become deeply connected to the Giver of life. Indeed I have come to understand my interconnectedness with all of creation. However it was not until I became an associate of the Sisters of St. Joseph that I had the words to truly express this so completely through our charism. I was invited to attend a meeting of Associates in Ottawa in the Fall of 2000 and I knew immediately that this was where I was meant to be. I had a longing in my heart for the experience of community and a way to express my spirituality. Through this small faith community and eventually the larger Associate movement I soon began to feel that I was part of something much greater and deeper than I had ever experienced. I knew that this had not happened by chance but was part of God’s plan for my life and after much discernment I made a formal commitment in 2001. Then in 2005 I made a decision to become part of a leadership team and as such I feel motivated, challenged, and committed to working with my two co-leaders to help our members grow in their awareness of the charism, and mission in their daily lives. This I try to do by listening to individual and group concerns and affirming and guiding them in their decisions and actions. I have found that it works on the principle of what I give to others comes back to me one hundredfold and so I truly am the one who is blessed in all of this. My ministry is in helping single women in their search for identity, self-respect, strength and empowerment following divorce and widowhood and in sponsoring women in the twelve-step program of Al-Anon. I have found that what they want and need is someone to care about their concerns and listen to their stories. When they ask for advice I only make suggestions and soon they find their own way of solving their problems. At the heart of our charism and mission is the “Oneness” that keeps me grounded and connected to everyone and all that is. In being an Associate I feel the strength, the faith, the inclusive and active love of the Sisters whom I see, meet and speak with at the motherhouse and this enriches and directs my living. More than this I am reminded of the strength and courage of those Associates and Sisters whose roots go back 350 years and have gone before all of us. I know for certain that they are with us in our mission of living in unity and reconciliation in all our relationships. I am as sure of this as I am of deep connection to the mighty Ottawa River that flows by me each day.
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