Once again it's my pleasure to introduce you to one of our sisters--up close and personal!!
Many of our sisters had early connections with the congregation—connections that reach back to elementary School. Sr. Kathleen Groome’s connection, however, seemed even more defined. “Believe it or not, the Franciscans were in my life every day of my first 15 years,” she said. Sr. Kathleen grew up the youngest of eight children. The family’s backyard was actually on the grounds of St. Elizabeth Parish in Philadelphia. Her aunt was a member of the congregation who lived at that same convent and was disciplinarian at Hallahan High School where Kathleen spend her secondary school years. While many of us stayed after school to “help sister” or occasionally helped out at the convent, Kathleen’s service was more detailed. “During the eight years in elementary school, I had a charge in the convent—community room, refectory, washing lunch dishes, sewing room, fire steps, porch, two parlors, and main hall. I guess you could say I was a young Franciscan!” This close relationship to the sisters in her early life played a major role in discerning her own vocation. To Kathleen, religious life was simply another extension of family. “A family is fun-loving, friendly, compassionate, helpful, encouraging, and prayerful,” she explained. “The Franciscans were all of these and so much more to me and my family. So…why not be a Franciscan.”
As in any work there are both challenges and blessings. For Sr. Kathleen these are connected. “The only challenge is keeping up with thanking our generous donors in a timely manner,” she said. “But to be aware of the numerous donors who request our prayers, who share with us the wonderful memories they have of our sisters—that is a blessing for me.” And for Sr.Kathleen, there is the whole reality of her vocation and the way in which she has lived out that call. “The greatest blessing is to have spent 58 years as a Sister of St. Francis of Philadelphia ministering and living with many saintly sisters, she explained. “I couldn’t imagine life any differently!”
Many of our sisters had early connections with the congregation—connections that reach back to elementary School. Sr. Kathleen Groome’s connection, however, seemed even more defined. “Believe it or not, the Franciscans were in my life every day of my first 15 years,” she said. Sr. Kathleen grew up the youngest of eight children. The family’s backyard was actually on the grounds of St. Elizabeth Parish in Philadelphia. Her aunt was a member of the congregation who lived at that same convent and was disciplinarian at Hallahan High School where Kathleen spend her secondary school years. While many of us stayed after school to “help sister” or occasionally helped out at the convent, Kathleen’s service was more detailed. “During the eight years in elementary school, I had a charge in the convent—community room, refectory, washing lunch dishes, sewing room, fire steps, porch, two parlors, and main hall. I guess you could say I was a young Franciscan!” This close relationship to the sisters in her early life played a major role in discerning her own vocation. To Kathleen, religious life was simply another extension of family. “A family is fun-loving, friendly, compassionate, helpful, encouraging, and prayerful,” she explained. “The Franciscans were all of these and so much more to me and my family. So…why not be a Franciscan.”
During her years in the congregation, Sr. Kathleen’s ministry experiences both utilized and further developed her many gifts. She served as both teacher and principal in elementary schools, worked in parish ministry, in healthcare, and as an administrative assistant in a middle school. In 2013 Sr. Mary Vandergeest, director of the Sisters of St. Francis Foundation, invited Sr. Kathleen to volunteer in the foundation office. She accepted and continues her service there, utilizing the organizational skills honed over the years. Currently her primary responsibilities include sending acknowledgement letters to donors and organizing the annual raffle project—a job that extends far beyond distributing tickets and counting returns. She contacts various parishes where our sisters are or have been connected and arranges dates when sisters can Sell Raffle Tickets after Masses. Then she rounds up teams of sisters to handle sales at each parish and makes sure the teams have everything they need for the designated day: collapsible tables, posters, pens, change, pre-addressed stamped envelopes for parishioners who prefer to mail in a donation, and appropriate letters of authorization
| Srs. Kathleen Groom, Kathleen Parisi, and Johanna Curran check and record raffle returns. |
| Sr. Kathleen packs up a supply of raffle tickets for the sisters who will be selling tickets in a parish. |
| Sr. Kathleen makes arrangements for sisters to sell raffle tickets at a parish in Wilmington. |
| Sr. Kathleen checks back files for information on a donor. |
| Sr. Kathleen adds information to the donor base. |
As in any work there are both challenges and blessings. For Sr. Kathleen these are connected. “The only challenge is keeping up with thanking our generous donors in a timely manner,” she said. “But to be aware of the numerous donors who request our prayers, who share with us the wonderful memories they have of our sisters—that is a blessing for me.” And for Sr.Kathleen, there is the whole reality of her vocation and the way in which she has lived out that call. “The greatest blessing is to have spent 58 years as a Sister of St. Francis of Philadelphia ministering and living with many saintly sisters, she explained. “I couldn’t imagine life any differently!”
