Meet Marian Schmidt, CSJ Hamilton Companion
Active Parishioner
My husband Roger and I have been married for 23 years and
we have three wonderful children, Chantelle, 20, Matt, 13
and Cody, 11. I am a self-employed owner of “Minuteman
Press,” a print shop in Woodstock, Ontario. I am an active
parishioner of St. Mary’s Parish in Brantford, ON. I
serve in my parish as a Minister of the Word, Minister of
the Eucharist, and also help out with Baptismal Preparation.
Before opening up our print shop, I was also a member of the
RCIA team and worked for a few years as St. Mary’s Parish
Secretary.
On a larger view, I am a Companion with the Sisters of St.
Joseph of Hamilton.
The Sisters of St. Joseph have been an active part of my
life, since the beginning. When I was born, my mother was
prepared to call me Sharon, while in the hospital, a Sister
of St. Joseph changed my mother’s mind, and so I was
named Marian. This was a good thing because it actually improved
relations between my mother and my grandmother. My dad’s
mother was always called “Stella,” when actually
her name was Marian.
Sisters Active in My Life
Sr. Noella, was the first Sister of St. Joseph that I can
remember having met. She used to tour through all of our schools
trying to open young minds to the sounds of music. Sr. St.
Pius was a dynamic woman and my grade 2 teacher. Not only
did she teach me the three R’s, but also from her I learned
forgiveness and love, ingenuity and kindness and most of all,
how to laugh. I was fortunate to have two Sisters of St. Joseph
in high school, Sr. Anne Marie Campbell and Sr. Lucille Godfrey;
both instructed me in the ways of religion. Sr. Anne Marie
Campbell was able to teach us a more fundamental style of
religion class, since it was not considered a “credited”
course. Sr. Lucy, one of my favourite teachers, had her challenges
in the new curriculum. Religion had now become a “credited”
course, so her role was to instruct us on “Family Life
and Sex Education.” There is a story to tell, but I really
don’t want to embarrass her, at least, not at this time!
Actually it was thanks to Sr. Lucy that I learned of the
Companions. After listening to her, I attended the Charism
evenings and knew I had found myself in the larger world.
A chord was struck when I realized that I shared the Sister’s
Charism of Unity and Reconciliation. Since becoming a Companion
I have made many new friends and feel strengthened by their
love and support. I have tried to contribute in a small way,
working with others to organize our retreats and more recently
to organize a “Christmas Baggie Campaign” for the
Hamilton “Out of the Cold” program, directed by
Sr. Carole Anne. The baggies have been a wonderful success.
Actively Wonderful Experience
I truly enjoy my small group meetings every month. Our small
group consists of seven people, six women and one man. They
are a source of strength for me, and my spirit is nourished
for the month ahead. Sometimes I find it hard to be in this
world and not feel alone, even when dealing with my own family
and attending Sunday Mass. When listening to the others in
my small group, knowing that we are taking different walks
through life, I am amazed at how we are so much the same and
yet unique. We all share the same core goals in life. Through
our sharing we often find different paths towards those goals,
probably ones we would not see on our own.
Being a Companion is a truly wonderful experience; through
my involvement I have been able to strengthen my ties to God
and Jesus and to my brothers and sisters in Christ.
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