“I thought the sisters came from heaven….”
LONG READ to enjoy.
The following is in honor of our 175th Anniversary as a diocese. This article was written by the late Sr. Anne Regina O’Leary, SSJC, for The Catholic Spirit on Nov. 12, 1992. (She served WV Catholic schools for 32 years in Wheeling, Weston, Fairmont, Huntington and Clarksburg. In 1964, she became the first female principal of the co-educational Central Catholic High School in Wheeling – a merger of her alma mater St. Joseph Academy, and CCHS that was boys only.)“I was four years old when my mother sent me to vacation Bible school in Nutter Fort with my older brothers and sisters. I loved it! I thought the sisters came from heaven each morning and returned there each evening. I remember the stories they told about Jesus, his mother, Mary, and St. Joseph… I thought the sisters smelled so clean and good.”
Such was Sister of St. Joseph Congregations Sr. Mary Jean Colombo’s impression of her first experience in a vacation Bible school.
The early 1930s witnessed the need and the beginning of vacation Bible schools that flourished in rural areas, missions, cities, and parishes and continued throughout the 40s, ’50s, ’60s…. As soon as the school year ended, superiors of religious congregations received requests from pastors for sisters to conduct vacation Bible schools for two, three, or four weeks. These requests were answered by various religious congregations. The Sisters of St. Joseph list 137 places where the faith of the people was nurtured by religious instruction. The term evangelization can truly be used to describe the vacation Bible schools where religious, pastors and laity carried the Word of God to the people throughout West Virginia.
The sisters really did not “come from heaven each day”! They came from hurriedly closed schools or community retreats, with hurriedly packed suitcases and boxes to journey throughout West Virginia where they would live in rectories, family homes, sacristies, nearby hospitals, or available convents. Sisters who taught in Williamson lived in the rectory while (the pastor) moved into the Mountaineer Hotel (still in existence in Williamson). In Shinnston the sisters stayed on the rectory second floor
and Father Jirh Egan occupied the first floor. Some religious remember living in the old St. Joseph Academy (Andrew Jackson’s house) on the site of Notre Dame High School in Clarksburg.
With the zeal of apostles and yet a bit of fear of the unknown, the sisters reported for the summer vacation Bible schools. They carried little with them. They had no visual aid resources or overhead projectors. Their teaching equipment consisted of a catechism, Bible stories and collections of holy cards and medals.
“Armed” with the catechism and their meager resources, they ventured forth each morning from the various places where they lived to meet the pastor who transported them by car to their missions where children awaited them. Some sisters remember traveling a total of 110 miles each day as they went from mission to mission.
In addition to transporting the sisters, some pastors also used station wagons, vans and buses to pick up the children and bring them to the church basement, the rectory, the public school building a neighbor’s porch, the park…wherever space was available for these vacation Bible schools.
Vacation schools! What a misnomer!
Consider for a few moments what the sisters did in these summer weeks. They taught catechism, relived Bible stories, prepared children for first confession and first holy communion, worked with confirmation classes of adults and children, played the organ and formed and directed choirs. In their “free” hours, they conducted a census for the pastor, updated church records, mended and washed church linens and vestments, cleaned and cooked. They visited families, shared meals with them, listened to joyful and sad stories, offered assistance, advice and encouragement.
Experiences encountered during the vacation Bible schools range from the hilarious to life threatening. Picture for a moment two sisters riding in the back seat of a car driven by their pastor-to-be for two weeks holding on to mattresses tied to the running boards mattresses-to-be-their-beds for the next two weeks One sister is still living (in 1992), can remember vividly this terrifying ride.
One experience never to be forgotten was the destruction and suffering caused by the tornado in Shinnston, June 23, 1944, during the vacation Bible school taught by Sister Francesca and Sister Edith.
They witnessed death and injuries among the children in their classes, destruction of homes, farms, and havoc in the lives of the people with whom they were involved. Sisters Francesca and Edith went to Shinnston primarily to teach catechism.
A devastating tornado made them reconcilers to the families touched by death, injury and loss.
Storytelling today of the vacation Bible schools could captivate audiences, create a best seller, and add a sequel to the popular “Sister Act” movie. Consider the curiosity of bystanders in bus and train stations, restaurants and local streets as fully habited sisters arrived where they had never been seen before. There is a story of the clerk in a candy store who was so startled when she saw two sisters she dropped the tub of candy.
One sister remembers riding horseback to the farm where a kind lady was preparing lunch. (There was also) fear (because it was necessary to be) escorted for security reasons to where you would meet your classes because your presence was unwelcome (for) some people existed. For some sisters it is the story of enjoying evenings of good music with Father Brumfield. Stories abound of organ playing and singing classes where the movement of the Spirit had to do the playing and directing! Remembrances of the little St. Peter’s Chapel in Valley Grove, of back porch teaching, of pastors and housekeepers abound. Sister Rose Ann Hefner first encountered the Sisters of St. Joseph in vacation Bible school in Ronceverte; Sister Rosalie Bucci met them as a child in Williamson. Countless people in West Virginia shared in these summer vacation Bible schools. Josephine Zando from War has detailed accounts of vacation Bible classes in McDowell County taught by the Pallotine Sisters and the Sisters of St. Joseph.
A group of sisters at Mt. St. Joseph gathered in a sharing session on summer Bible schools and reflected on the many aspects of their experiences. Teaching in vacation Bible schools was difficult and demanding physically, emotionally. And yet, the satisfaction and positive aspects were rewarding. It was a joy to see the children and their parents on First Holy Communion Day and when the Bishop came for Confirmation. The sacrifices made by everyone became worthwhile.
Pastors made many adjustments in their living arrangements to accommodate the sisters. Sisters gave of themselves to the demands of those weeks to be a welcoming and instructive presence to the children who likewise gave of their summer vacation. Families sacrificed to have the children ready for the Bible classes, shared their homes and food with the sisters. The combined efforts of all involved contributed to make the vacation Bible schools a strong factor in nurturing the faith.
Today many people throughout West Virginia look back to the vacation Bible schools and remember with fondness and gratitude the many religious who prepared them for first holy communion and confirmation and deepened their awareness of God’s love and compassion.
Josephine Zando from War, expresses it as follows:
As we recall our early years and instruction in vacation Bible schools, we are so thankful to the priests, sisters and lay teachers who enriched our lives. These priests, sisters and laity, too countless to name, are among the pioneers in bringing the faith to West Virginia.
Some of these early evangelists have gone before us, some are still involved in the mission of the church in West Virginia. Others who are retired pray each day for those priests, religious and laity who are the evangelists of today teaching in all forms of religious education and nurturing the faith of God’s people of today in West Virginia.NOTE: photos accompanying this article are from the archives of the Congregation of St. Joseph
