October 24, 2016

Good morning, good people.  I believe this greeting is attributed to St. Francis.  May it be a good day and a good week for you.

Over the weekend a group of about 25 ladies were at Saint Francis Center for a couple retreat days.  They joined us for Mass and brunch on Sunday.  We are happy to share our space with our guests.

Life is falling back into a regular pace after our week of meetings last week.  I always enjoy our time together…but is good to get back to the regular routine again.

Sunday afternoon the KCs served cake and ice cream to the Sisters.  They do this every year on a Sunday near Columbus Day.  Thank you, gentlemen, for the tasty treat and for your friendship.  God bless you.

A Blood Drive takes place in Saint Francis Hall on Tuesday and Wednesday (1:00-7 p.m.) (October 25 & 26) and Thursday (8: a.m. to 2 p.m.).  Thank you, generous donors.  You are life savers.

Peace and blessings.

Sister Mary Lou

August 10, 2016

Last week just got away from me and the week was over…so I gave catching up to do this week.  On July 16^th, we had our Saint Francis High School Reunion.  About 120 “Frannies” returned for a day of remembering, sharing stories, laughing, some tears, too, and praying together.  It was a wonderful day.  I think Mary Ann Renner summed it up best when she said, “The whole day felt like one big hug.”

On July 31^st we celebrated our 7 sisters who have been Franciscan sisters for 60 years:  Sister Noreen Bentfield, Sister Rita Kraemer, Sister Kay Watts, Sister Beverly Weidner,  Sister Janice Welle. Sister Karen Niedzielski and Sister Maurita Niedzielski.  Congratulations, Sisters on these many years as Franciscan Sisters of Little Falls.

Wednesday, August 3^rd, we had our 10^th Annual Green  Fair Folk Festival.  The weather was perfect—an answer to prayer as the forecast earlier in the week was for a rainy day.  My guess is that about 1,000 people came to join us for an evening of fun food and learning about environmental friendly ways of doing things.  Three of us were tour guides.  We told about the southern part if our property while riding on a horse-drawn wagon.  There was always a line for the next ride when we got back.  

A retreat for 60+ Sisters started on August 5^th and will finish on the 11^th.

On August 4^th we had a Retirement Celebration for Phyllis Dobis who worked in the Finance Office for MANY years.  We miss her.  No one will be hired to fill her position.  Rather jobs in the Finance Office will be rearranged to covert the work she did.

The Paint-a-Thon in Morrison County was held on Saturday, August 6^th.  Five homes were painted by volunteers.  The Franciscan Sisters donated cinnamon and caramel rolls to feed hungry painters.  The weather was nice for painting.  God bless the many painters who donated a Saturday to help a neighbor.

The apple harvest is coming in.  There is lots of activity in the convent kitchen preparing the fruit for freezing.

On Sunday, August 14th, we will have an Open House to celebrate Sister Bernarda Sanoski’s 100^th Birthday.  Congratulations, Sister and thank you for all your services in the Health Care Ministry.  God bless and continue to care for you.

May the Lord walk with you each day…and may YOU walk with the Lord each day, too

Peace and blessings,

Sister Mary Lou

July 19, 2010:

That was quite a storm that roared through Saturday night. We spent a couple hours in the basement waiting for the all-clear time. The Sisters at the Motherhouse spent time in the dining room during the tornado-warning time, too. I did not like the looks of the green sky and churning clouds. Praise God that we were protected from damage. And my prayers go out to farmers who lost crops and all others that suffered property damage.

Last Friday night was the17th Relay for Life event in Morrison County at Flyers Field. Several of us attended the Survivors dinner. I walked the first round, the Survivors’ Walk, for myself and all our Sisters who are cancer survivors. There were 31 teams who walked through the night. I heard they raised about $133,000. That’s a lot of money. Brittany Dobmeier told her story of having pancreatic cancer. Since hearing those words, she said, “The Relay has a whole new meaning for me. It hit home.” Brittany is a 22 year-old pre-med student at Hamline University in St. Paul. This year’s theme was: To Celebrate More Birthdays. Next year the Relay will be July 15. The awards went to Kathy Hubner as the top individual and the Bookin It team as the high money raisers. Thanks. The quilt is made of the various shirts worn during the Relay over the years.


The County Fair came to an abrupt and early end Saturday night when the storms came up and the Fairgrounds were evacuated.

Last Wednesday evening the group, As Good As it Gets, came to entertain the Sisters. They are five ladies who like to sing and play together. They invited us to join them in singing some of the songs we knew.


Last week I was to the Mississippi River. I could hardly believe how low the water is…rocks sticking out all over the place.

Yesterday three of us went for a Sunday afternoon drive. (It reminded us of when we were kids and went with our parents to check-out-the-crops.) Our first stop was at Umbria, our cottage on The River south of Rice, MN. We had heard that the fields of wild flowers were so beautiful. The ARE!!! This is the third year that the land has not been grain fields. The land was planted with prairie grasses and wild flowers. It is a beautiful sight to behold.

Our next stop was to enjoy the beauty of the Munsinger and Clemens Gardens. They are so beautiful. I talked with a couple from Duluth who came to St. Cloud just to see the gardens. If you’ve not been there, it is worth the trip.


It is quiet around the house these days because a big, silent retreat started last evening and goes until Saturday noon. May God bless all those in retreat and renew their spirits. There are 70+ making the retreat. I am working in the mailroom all week so Sr. Georgine can make the retreat.


Peace and blessings. May God protect us from damaging storms.


Sister Mary Lou

January 19, 2010

I’ve enjoyed the January thaw. But from what I hear, things could change to snow, sleet and/or rain by the end of the week. This wetter “stuff” sure makes for dirty cars. The hoar frost has made for a beautiful world to look at. Only God could cover everything so beautifully.

Let us continue to keep in prayer the suffering people of Haiti and all those who are bringing aid to the survivors of that horrendous earthquake. I cannot imagine the devastation on that island.

Retreat ended last Thursday. I really liked it. I now know so much more about the Gospel of St. Luke. And this is good. This year the Sunday Gospel readings for Mass are from the Gospel of Luke. Father Jude Winkler, OFM, Conv. has a reflection on the daily Scripture readings at companionsofstanthony.org.

Bloodmobile Report: Our blood drive last Wednesday, Thursday and Friday yielded 240 units of blood. That’s a lot. This was twenty short of our goal, but nonetheless it was still a marvelous turnout. There was a blood drive at Camp Ripley the same days as our blood drive. And I think some of our donors went there instead. And that is OK. Much needed blood was collected and that is the point of the blood drives. Thank you, donors. (I have a feeling that the person from the Cities who set up the drives, didn’t realize how near Little Falls and Camp Ripley are to one another.)

Last Thursday we had the funeral for Sister Seraphine. She was quite a lady. In her later years she kept herself very busy with making craft projects for the Gift Shop. The stories told at her Wake were very entertaining. She liked to play little tricks on people and always had a twinkle in her eye that made one wonder what she was up to next

Last Friday there was a farewell reception for Sister Carolita Mauer at North Dakota State College of Science in Wahpeton, ND. She has taught in the Occupational Therapy Department for 37 years and been chairperson of the Department to a good share of that time (31 years). Congratulations, Sr. Carolita and thank you for a job well done.

Our oldest Sister, Sr. Justina, celebrated her 98th birthday on Saturday. She had a great day. I see her at daily Mass, in the dining room, mailroom and all around the building. My thought is that any day above ground is a good day.

The twenty persons who were on the Mission Trip to Nicaragua returned Saturday evening. It was another successful event. Sister Grace said they cared for over 250 persons in the medical clinic during three and a half days. She’s been telling us interesting stories of things that happened during their two weeks in Nicaragua.

This coming Saturday, January 23rd, is our Soup Supper fund raiser…three kinds of soup and fresh bread. What more could you wish for? The hours are 4:30 to 7 p.m. in the St. Francis Convent dining room.

God bless you.
Sister Mary Lou

January 11, 2010

We are in a heat wave. Saturday morning it was minus 19 degrees outside. This morning it was zero and maybe by the end of the week we will be closing in on the 30s. Wow! January thaw? I hope so. My brothers are snow-birding in Texas. It was 28 there this morning and their exposed pipes did not freeze—for which they are grateful.

There is a retreat going on here at the Motherhouse until Thursday noon. Father Jude Winkler, OFM, Conv., is the retreat master. Of the 50+ Sisters making the retreat, most of them live here on campus. We are reflecting on the Gospel of Luke. This is a prayer-filled time for all of us. The Sunday Gospel readings this year are from Luke, so it is good to get new insights into this Gospel.

This is a silent retreat, so it is pretty quiet around here. During the retreat I’ve made it a point to sit in the dining room so I face the beautiful woodcarving of the Last Supper that hangs on the far west wall. This is a beautiful piece of art carved by E. Zelimar. It is about 20 by 36 inches in size and carved from one piece of wood and is about 2 ½ inches in depth. What talent the carver shares with us.

Yesterday afternoon at 3:30 our Sister Mary Seraphine went to heaven. Her funeral is Thursday at 11 a.m. May she be enjoying life with the Lord. She had fallen in her room on January 1st and had surgery on the 2nd. It was too much for her 93 year young body to take. She was so ready to go to a new home in heaven.

There is a Red Cross Blood drive here Wednesday, Thursday from 1 to 7 p.m., and Friday from8 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The blessing at the end of morning prayer today is: May God give us peaceful hearts, fill our souls with joy and preserve in us the virtue of patience. Now, isn’t that something to think about for a while?


Pax et Bonum
Sister Mary Lou