Jewels from Jane, August 24

"After a five-day voyage in the Pacific Ocean, the nine sister founders [Mary Virginia Becker, Mary Zenaide Belanger, Mary Felix Jochem, Frances Celine Leahy, Alice Josephine Tornovich, Mary Faber Vanderwerf, Adele Marie Lemon, Mary Anne Bahner, Ann Patrice O'Connor] arrived at the port of Honolulu on the morning of August 24, 1938. From the moment of their arrival, the profuse hospitality characteristic of the Islands began to teach them about the culture of the people awaiting them. The sisters said:

Will any of us ever forget our arrival in Honolulu, the strains of "Aloha" and the undercurrent of excitement? Remember the hula girls, the reporters, the exotic flowers, the animated throng on the pier, and especially the diverse group that came to welcome us on that never-to-be-forgotten August twenty-fourth?
There to greet us were the Sacred Heart Fathers, Sacred Heart Sisters, Franciscan and Maryknoll Sisters, and...Father Valentine who represented the Bishop...[who]was over on the Island of Molokai....The Marianist Priests and Brothers were there, and...our future pastor accompanied by a large group of his parishioners. As we stepped ashore, we were greeted warmly with dozens of leis. Will you ever forget that moment?

"While the flowers brightened the black of their habits, the sisters later commented on the stains they left on the guimpe: 'A nun's attire in those days was never designed to be worn with flowers.'

"In addition to teaching in St. Theresa's School, the sisters took charge of catechesis in public schools, on plantations and at the Schofield Army Base. The students at the parish school represented 17 distinct nationalities."


From Mary McGlone's book: Comunidad para el Mundo: The History of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet and the Vice Province of Peru