Volume L, No. 2 Summer 2018

INSIDE

& More!

▶ First Profession▶ Novitiate▶ NADI▶ Diamond Jubilee▶ Vocation News

Sister Peggy Venteicher Makes Perpetual Profession

Above: S. Peggy Venteicher reads her profession formula.

We are Benedictine women of Yankton, South Dakota, sharing our gift of seeking God through our prayer, work, study and community life.

Rooted in our rural heritage and growing in relationship with God and one another in monastic community, we live a life of prayer, work, and lectio by which we serve God and God’s people in our time and place.

Christians follow Christ by bringing to life the values of the Gospel. We have gathered clusters of these values into these three: Awareness of God, Community, and Hospitality.

Core Values

Mission

Charism

Above: S. Peggy takes a moment during the reception to smile with S. Maribeth Wentzlaff,

Prioress.

S. Peggy Veneicher, OSB, made her Perpetual Monastic Profession as a member of Sacred Heart Monastery, Yankton, SD, on July 28, 2018 in the presence of her family, friends, and monastic community. “I am called according to His purpose” from Romans 8:28 is the quote S. Peggy chose for this special day. Aware of God’s love throughout her life, S. Peggy says, “Many years after the multiple seeds were planted, my heart was open to God’s call and I am able

to answer with a joyful ‘Yes.’”S. Peggy is the daughter of

Lyle and Denise Venteicher of Pierce, NE. She was baptized at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church, Pierce, NE, and attended Pierce Elementary and Pierce High School. She received her Bachelor of Science degree in nursing from Mount Marty College in 2005 and was employed by Faith Regional Health Services in Norfolk for seven years. In 2012 she entered Sacred Heart Monastery and made her First Profession on August 3, 2014. S. Peggy says that she was drawn to the Benedictine charism

“because of the community of love and support found every day.” This sense of community has carried into her ministry as a Registered Nurse at Avera Sacred Heart Hospital in Yankton. S. Peggy continues, “Being called to Sacred Heart Monastery has been a true journey of self-awareness, love and support. Making Perpetual Profession is the continuation of this journey, growing closer to God and being one with community. It wasn’t until I deepened my search for God that I found my inner peace, love and joy. I pray that God may bless you.”

Dear Friends,

What an amazing summer we are experiencing! We are truly fortunate to live in a region where we can experience all four seasons. Seeing the visible changes in the colors of the horizon calls us to know that nothing is stagnant, and that we are constantly moving from life to death, back to life again. St. Benedict reminds us that we are to “keep death daily before [our] eyes”, yet, while we live, we are to live with good zeal and with fervent and holy love.

As a Benedictine monastic, we profess three vows: Obedience, Stability, and Fidelity to the Monastic Way of Life (or the old terminology for this one is “conversatio” or “Conversion of Life.”) Through the act of listening (obedience) and staying faithful to each other (stability), we will experience a conversion in our own lives. We do this through a process called “formation.” In our early years of community before we make final profession, we participate in initial formation to learn all about the Benedictine way of life. We take classes, work, and attend liturgy of the hours with the rest of the community. In this issue of Yankton Benedictines, you will hear about three women making their commitment to the next level of formation. This process takes much

prayer and discernment on the part of the individual and community, and it is not entered into lightly. After a sister has made perpetual profession, she begins a whole new process of conversion: ongoing formation. This takes our whole life, and it is a journey of growing closer to God through community every day! This is a daily saying “YES” to God’s call to us in our vocation. In this issue, a few of our sisters will share their lived experience of fifty-plus years in the monastic life. Finally, we have the obituary of S. Grace Feldhacker who passed into eternity this summer. The journey has come full circle, and, through God’s mercy, it has brought us back to our Creator.

Maybe in the midst of busy summer activities, it might be a good time to ask ourselves, “Where am I in MY formation journey?” As St. Benedict would say in his Holy Rule, all monastics are in the school of the Lord’s service. Are we taking our lessons to heart? May God bless the rest of your summer!

Reflection from Prioress — S. Maribeth Wentzlaff, OSB

Your Sister in Christ, S. Maribeth

Prioress2017-2023

September

October

November

1 – Council Meeting2 –Adoration 1:30-2:30 p.m.3 – Labor Day8 – Spiritual Growth Program 9:30-11:30 a.m.21-23 – Praying the Scriptures with Mary Retreat27-28 – Residency Spiritual Direction Tutorial Program

6 – Council Meeting6 – Spiritual Growth Program 9:30-11:30 a.m.7 – Adoration 1:30-2:30 p.m.26-28 – Oblate Retreat 20 – Holiday Fair31 – First Vespers for All Saints

1 – Feast of All Saints4 – Adoration 1:30-2:30 p.m.7-9 – Prayer of the Heart Retreat10 – Council Meeting10 – Spiritual Growth Program 9:30-11:30 a.m.22 – Thanksgiving

Fall 2018 Schedule

Flexible scheduling for● Your Silent Personal Retreat

● Spiritual Direction● Group Retreats

Spiritual Formation Opportunities:● Spiritual Direction Ministry ―Individual and flexible Tutorial● Spiritual Growth Program ―

Meeting 2nd Saturday, starting Sept. 8● Scripture Studies ― starting again Fall ’18

Retreats:● Praying the Scriptures with Mary ―

Weekend Retreat, Sept. 21‒23● Prayer of the Heart ―

Midweek Retreat, Nov. 7‒9● Advent Morning of Reflection ― Dec. 1

December

To contact us for more information:www.yanktonbenedictines.org/Center

BenedictinePeaceCtr@mtmc.edu605-668-6292

Benedictine Peace CenterSpiritual Refreshment Opportunities at a

Monastic Retreat Center

April 17: S. Bonita Gacnik read to the kindergarten class at St. Benedict’s School, Yankton, SD, Chicka Chicka Boom Boom. She then explained more about sisters and religious life.

April 21: Ss. Clarice Korger, Kathy Burt, Louise Marie Goettertz, and Postulant Theresa McGinn and a group of 13 women gathered for the third annual “Coffee and Canvas” class. This class incorporates scripture, painting a chosen theme, and of course coffee!

April 22: The Oblate ceremony for receiving a Novice, making Final Oblation, and Renewing of Oblation was held in Bishop Marty Memorial Chapel.

April 28: S. Candyce Chrystal received recognition as “Distinguished Alumna of the Year” at her alma mater, Marquette University in Milwaukee. S. Candyce has been

appointed to serve as the Interim Dean of Academic Affairs at Mount Marty College this next year.

May 4: Fifth grade pen pals from Sacred Heart School joined the sisters for a picnic on the patio. Fifth graders from St. Mary’s School in Sioux Falls, SD, also visited for a field trip.

May 29-June 1: S. Rosemarie Maly, assistant director of campus ministry, and Jordan Foos, Mount Marty College campus ministry director, attended the Catholic Campus Ministry Association National Convention, in Minneapolis, MN. The theme of the conference was “Called 2018: That Your Joy Be Complete,” with a different theme each day: “Call to Evangelize; Call to Discipleship; Call to Mission; Call to Professionalism.”

May 31: S. Mary Carole Curran retired from her position at Avera Behavioral Health. She is looking forward to staying active through a variety of new volunteer opportunities.

Ss. Esther Holzbauer and Matthew Wehri have retired from their positions at Mount Marty College. Combined they have served almost 90+ years of ministry. S. Kathy Burt is leaving her position as instructor of nursing at Mount Mary College and has accepted a position as Clinical Nurse Educator at Avera Sister James Nursing Home.

June 10-15: S. Clarice Korger spent a week at St. John’s University in Collegeville, MN. She was there for YTM. YTM (Youth in Theology and Ministry) engages and develops Catholic young people and their adult mentors to be vibrant leaders in their faith journey and vocational call. While at YTM, the high school students have opportunities to attend Theology classes taught by St. John’s professors, be exposed to multiple forms of prayer, engage in service in the surrounding area, and socialize with each other in the evenings.

June 13-19: S. Jeanne Weber attended the Federation of St. Scholastica Chapter meeting in Cullman, AL.

June 13-19: S. Marielle Frigge presented a conference retreat titled “A Paschal Christ at the Heart of the Rule” for the sisters at Annunciation Monastery in Bismarck, ND.

June 18-19: S. Karen Joseph did a workshop for sisters who entered Sacred Heart Monastery after 1983.

July 9-15: S. Jeanne Ranek gave a conference retreat titled “Paths to Transformation on the Monastic Way” for the Benedictine Sisters in Boerne, TX.

News Notes

S. Bonita Gacnik hands out pamphlets and information about St. Benedict and the monastery.

“Coffee and Canvas” Participants

Standing (left to right) S. Patricia Heirgis, oblate director; Noreen Duchene, Barb Rezac, Elizabeth Kleinschmit, Linda Bruning, and Betty Adam, and S. Maribeth Wentzlaff, prioress. Seated (left to right): Patricia Loeffler, Jan Hausmann, and Joan Burt

At Saturday Vespers on August 4th in the presence of S. Maribeth Wentzlaff, prioress, and the Benedictine Sisters, Novice Terry Lafferty made her first profession to live a life of obedience, stability, and conversion of life according to the Rule of St. Benedict. Commenting on her profession, S. Terry reflects: “I am grateful for the opportunity to serve God, this community, and in the world as a Benedictine Sister.” Novice Terry is from Philadelphia, PA, and is the third of eight children of Patricia A. and the late Francis J. Lafferty. While serving as Assistant Professor of Theology at Mount Marty, Terry began studying the life of the Benedictine Sisters next door to the college campus, which led to her decision to join the Monastery. Her family joined the sisters in the joyful celebration of her profession. A reception was held in the monastery Chapter Room after the ceremony.

Theresa McGinn was received into the novitiate at Sacred Heart Monastery, Yankton, SD, during evening Vespers on Sunday, August 5, 2018. During her novitiate year, Novice Theresa will spend time in prayer and will participate in the daily activities of the monastery. She will study the Rule of St. Benedict, Benedictine life, community, Benedictine history, scripture, the meaning of monastic profession, and human development. S. Sharon Ann Haas will serve as her director. Reflecting on this next step in her life, Novice Theresa says, “I am looking forward to immersing myself into monastic life. My goal is to seek God’s will in all things I do. I know that if this is where He wants me, this will be a blessed time in my life.”

Novice Theresa became acquainted with the Yankton Benedictines when she became a Residential Volunteer in the spring of 2016. She was born in Fort Lauderdale, FL in 1962. She was raised in Lighthouse Point, FL just north of Fort Lauderdale. She is one of three children (Michael and Mary) to Frank and Betty McGinn.

Theresa’s background prior to coming to South Dakota was attending college in Indiana for education prior to teaching at a Montessori school and kindergarten for two years before becoming a primary care-taker for her father. She has enjoyed serving in various ministries at Sacred Heart Monastery including the Gift Shop staff and taking formation classes.

Novice Terry Lafferty Makes First Profession

Theresa McGinn Welcomed to Novitiate

Terry Lafferty (left) signs the “Document of Profession” as S. Maribeth Wentzlaff, prioress, looks on.

Theresa McGinn (left) takes a moment at the reception with S. Maribeth Wentzlaff, prioress.

NADI: Learning and Growing in the School of the Lord’s Service

Sacred Heart Monastery hosted the Novice and Directors Institute (NADI) from May 15-25, 2018. There were sixteen participants in the Institute. Participants came from Ferdinand, IN; Atchison, KS; St. Joseph, MN; Blanco, NM; Erie, PA; Bristow, VA; and Yankton, SD.

The Institute provides an opportunity for novices and directors to learn and reflect on the Rule of St. Benedict and the monastic way of life. It is also a time for novices and directors across the country to share and spend time together.

The theme for the Institute was “Learning and Growing in the School of the Lord’s Service.” Sisters of Sacred Heart Monastery gave presentations on various topics related to the theme. The participants shared Eucharist and Liturgy of the Hours, along with their meals with the Sacred Heart Monastery community. One of the highlights for the participants was to have one of the Sisters of Sacred Heart Monastery as a prayer partner. One of the participants shared, “It was special to have one of the sisters praying for me during the NADI experience.” On Thursday evening, they had a closing banquet for the participants of NADI and all of the sisters. The novices provided a delightful program in which they shared what they learned. They also gave each of the sisters a bookmark as a remembrance of their NADI experience. The Institute was concluded with a blessing for the participants by the sisters of Sacred Heart Monastery

Included in the Institute was a time for service and to see some of the sights in the area. Another participant shared, “There were many, many ideas to be pondered and to learn from and embrace and live. The presentation touched a much needed aspect of human life, but most especially a life consecrated to God as Benedictines.”

At the close of their final residency, April 16-19, 2018, eleven women received their certification, celebrating the successful completion of a two-year spiritual direction training program at the Benedictine Peace Center of Sacred Heart Monastery, Yankton, SD. Participants came from Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, and South Dakota. This special group is the last cohort of “Listening to the Wisdom of the Heart,” a formative training program with a 25-year history

that has certified over a hundred spiritual directors from coast to coast. The program will continue in a new tutorial design which offers the same rich content but can better accommodate busy schedules and needs of motivated adult learners. The tutorial program, arranged in four segments, can be started at any time and may be spread over two years. Each of the four terms includes a two-day residency at the Benedictine Peace Center in Yankton, SD.

More information is available at https://yanktonbenedictines.org/spiritual-direction-minis-try-tutorial/ or by contacting Program Director, S. Jeanne Ranek, OSB, PhD, at jeanne.ranek@mtmc.edu.

Front Row: Novice Directors Mary Reuter, Kateri Lovato, Louise Laroche, Marily Schauble, Kathy Perssons, Patricia Siepel, Michael Marie Rottinghaus, and Sharon Ann Haas. Back Row: Novices Laura Suhr, Mercy Hoang, Stephen Phiri, Roxanne Higgins, Kathleen McCarthy, Laura Haschke, Jennifer Halling, and Kay Fitzgerald.

Eleven Certified as Spiritual Directors

Participants and Directors of “Listening to the Wisdom of the Heart”

Continuing Education at the “School of the Lord’s Service”

Diamond Jubilarian60 years - Sister Mary Carole Curran

S. Mary Carole says that her call to religious life began in her childhood. She shares, “I always knew God was calling me but tried at first to ignore that persistent voice. Despite receiving several scholarships elsewhere, a full scholarship to Mount Marty College appears a part of God’s plan for me and drew me to Yankton and Sacred Heart Monastery.”

S. Mary Carole grew up in York, NE, with her parents, Jim and Mabel Curran, and brother John; her mother became ill and died when she was ten. She reflects that she, “sees now that this was also preparing me for my later ministry as a family therapist.”

During her mother’s illness, she boarded with the Benedictine Sisters at St. Joseph’s School in York, NE. After completing elementary and high school at St. Joseph’s, she entered Sacred Heart Monastery in 1956. S. Mary Carole made her first profession in 1958 and final profession in 1961 and was then known as S. Mabel.

S. Mary Carole earned a BA, and MA in math, and a PhD in psychology. Her ministries have included teaching at the elementary, secondary and college levels, and as a therapist and counselor. “I am a life-long learner and took advantage of every educational opportunity that was available. I am very fond of traveling and have had numerous opportunities to see the world.” A couple trips to note include participating in three diocesan pilgrimages and traveling to Ghana, Africa in March 2003 to visit her missionary cousin, Fr. Bill Curran. She is an avid reader ... and she “like(s) to swim, play golf, watch football on TV, and enjoys the symphony and other cultural events.” She was the director of Catholic Family Services for thirteen years for the Diocese of Sioux Falls. She was a psychologist with Avera Medical Group Behavioral Health in Yankton, for the last five years. She shares, “I am now beginning to look into the future for expanded possibilities as I look forward to another life change.”

“My 60 years as a Benedictine means 60 years of opportunity to make a difference. The personal, professional, and spiritual support provided by my religious community these 60 years has enabled me to influence the intellectual and spiritual growth of young people and adults in the classroom; promote healing in the lives of abused children and adults; minister to the divorced, widowed, and separated; reach out to those incarcerated in our prisons; and provide opportunities to bring healing to veterans impacted by the horrors of war.”

When St. Benedict says that he is “going to establish a school for the service of the Lord (RB Prol. 45),” we usually think of the new women in community, going through the stages of monastic formation as we have featured in this issue. However, Benedict also teaches that one should faithfully observe his teachings until death (Prol. 50). To that end, the On-going Formation committee plans annual week long community retreats, biannual Theology Institutes (to which the public is invited) and monthly evenings of input and discussion. S. Marielle Frigge, committee chair, underscores that in monastic profession, “a Benedictine promises conversatio morum, a Latin phrase which expresses a continuous, communal action: lifelong seeking to know, love, and serve God ever more fully.”

From the perspective of one who has been living the Benedictine life for over sixty years, S. Doris Oberembt sees that monastic life has many built-in opportunities for growth. “Just as in families, the ups and downs of daily monastic life challenge us to see God’s presence and

invitation, stretching us, chipping away at our self-centered and limited views, and calling us to selfless loving, giving, and forgiving. I find a great bonding and unity in the daily rhythm of communal prayer, table-sharing, working and recreating together. Because the sisters are diverse in background, talent, age, education, and experience, we enrich each other’s lives by our life together. Ministry also is a wonderful opportunity and gift. I hope that those to whom and with whom I minister are as blessed as I am, and I pray that God ‘will bring us all together to life everlasting’ (RB 72:11).”

S. Marielle Frigge (left) discuses text on St. Benedict with S. Doris Oberembt (right).

Voc Jam Brings Witness of a SaintBy Vocation Director, S. Clarice Korger

Imagine a modern new building bustling with people and energy. When you are there, one can’t help but be caught up in the excitement of the place. This was just the situation when another sister and I went to the Vocations Jamboree at the University of Mary in Bismarck, North Dakota the 17th – 19th of April.

This was the third Vocations Jamboree (or “Voc Jam” as it became known). This event is the result of a partnership between the University of Mary, the Diocese of Bismarck, Annunciation Monastery, and Assumption Abbey.

We two sisters (S. Kathy Burt and I) experienced the wonderful Benedictine hospitality of the sisters of Annunciation Monastery while we stayed in their guest department. The “Voc Jam” brought vocation directors and representatives of Catholic service groups from across the country to the University of Mary campus. This gave University of Mary students (along with students from local area Catholic high schools), the opportunity to visit one-on-one with various religious orders and service groups.

Also part of the “Voc Jam” is the conferring of the Lumen Vitae award on the keynote speaker. This year’s speaker was Dr. Gianna Emmanuela Molla. She is the daughter that St. Gianna Beretta Molla gave her life for. Dr. Molla shared her

parents’ beautiful love story with us— their deep love for each other and for the Church. Her mother saw each child as a gift from God. Prior to Dr. Molla’s birth, St. Gianna informed her husband Pietro, “If you must decide between me and the child, do not hesitate: choose the child. I insist on it. Save the baby.”

It was certainly a gift to be able to hear Dr. Molla speak and to be able to interact with so many young people and other vocation directors. College students, mark your calendars for March 19-21, 2019, for the fourth annual Vocations Jamboree.

Ss. Clarice Korger and Kathy Burt pose at their booth at Voc Jam with a cut-out foam board prop newspaper.

S. Grace Feldhacker, OSB, 92, died on Sunday, June 3, 2018. A wake service was held at 7:00 p.m. on Wednesday, June 6, and the funeral Mass was celebrated on Thursday, June 7, at 10:00 a.m., both in Bishop Marty Memorial Chapel. Burial was in the monastery cemetery.

Agatha Feldhacker was born on July 4, 1925, on the family farm near Crofton, NE. She was the sixteenth of seventeen children of Edward and Julia Rose (Tramp) Feldhacker. She attended the Beaver Creek public school through the eighth grade. Agatha entered Sacred Heart Monastery on August 30, 1939 at the age of fourteen, and attended Mount Marty High School. She was invested as a novice on June 23, 1942, and received the name Grace. S. Grace made her first profession on June 24, 1943, and her final profession on June 24, 1947. She would have celebrated her 75th Jubilee of Profession this summer.

After many years of summer school, she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in education from Mount Marty College. S. Grace ministered to God’s little ones as a teacher of primary grades, most of her years teaching first grade. In her early years, she served in schools in Richardton, North Dakota and missions in South Dakota. Later, she was assigned to missions in her home state and served in Lincoln, Omaha, Albion and Hartington, Nebraska. She ended her teaching career in 1979 and began working in Food Services at Avera Sacred Heart Hospital in Yankton, South Dakota. She retired from the hospital after serving twenty-five years, and continued to volunteer at the hospital as long as she was physically able.

S. Grace loved her family and kept running tallies of the many nieces and nephews she had in the generations who followed her. She approached life with a childlike innocence and was delighted by the places she saw as she traveled in later years. She was also known for her competitive nature when playing cards.

S. Grace is survived by her Benedictine community and numerous nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her parents and all her siblings. In our Prayers... remembering our loved ones: | Family of the Sisters:Dorothy Ecks, aunt of S. Virginia PieperEdmund Goettertz, brother of S. Louise Marie GoettertzCarol Kolbeck, sister-in-law of S. Marita KolbeckDolores Lindgren, mother of S. Denette Leifeld

Irene Meyer, aunt of S. Joelle Bauer and sister of deceased S. Evangeline AndersonTerry Quintus, nephew of S. Marcine QuintusCurt Streff, brother of S. Joyce Streff

Into Eternal Peace

Advisors, Writers, Photographers: Ss. Barbara Kowalkowski, Clarice Korger, Francine Streff, Marita Kolbeck, Mary Jo Polak, Mary Kay Panowicz, Penny Bingham and Virginia Pieper.

YANKTON BENEDICTINES Sacred Heart Monastery 1005 West 8th Street Yankton, SD 57078 http://www.yanktonbenedictines.org

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MORNING PRAYER Monday—Friday @ 6:30 a.m.

Saturday & Sunday @ 8:30 a.m. EVENING PRAYER

Monday—Friday @ 5:15 p.m. Sunday @ 5:00 p.m.

EUCHARIST Monday—Friday @ 6:55 a.m.

Sunday @10:00 a.m. Eucharistic Adoration, 2-4 p.m.

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Editor: Raelynn Coldwell raelynn.coldwell@mtmc.edu

If you hear his voice today, do not harden your hearts

(Ps 94 [95]:8)

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BE E NSearching?

Consider ourRESIDENTIAL VOLUNTEER PROGRAM

We have an opportunity for single women to enhance their lives by sharing in the life,

prayer and ministries of our Monastery.

Prayer Community ServiceOne Heart, One Soul

SACRED HEART MONASTERYYankton, South Dakota

@YBshm

@shmvolunteer& shmvocation

@photos/yankton_benedictines/

@Yankton Benedictines

Visit us: http://yanktonbenedictines.org Volunteer Director Sr. Bonita @bgacnik@mtmc.edu

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MORNING PRAYERMonday-Friday @ 6:30 a.m.

Saturday & Sunday @ 8:30 a.m.EVENING PRAYER

Monday-Friday @ 5:15 p.m.Sunday @ 5:00 p.m.

EUCHARISTMonday-Friday @ 6:55 a.m.

Sunday @ 10:00 a.m.Eucharistic Adoration, 1:30-2:30 p.m.

First Sunday of the month

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PROGRESSING IN THE SCHOOL OF THE LORD’S SERVICE