2017 Jubilee Celebrations
Every year, our community celebrates jubilees, special celebrations designating an anniversary year. This year, we have sisters celebrating 50 and 60 years of religious life.
50th Jubilarian
Sister Donna Demmer responded to the Lord as she began her journey of religious life 50 years ago, “I will serve you in the midst of the people whom you have chosen … Give your servant, therefore, an understanding heart …” (1 Kings 3:8)
And Jesus said to Sister Donna, “The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure … a pearl of great price …” (Matthew 13:44, 46)
And Sister Donna responded, “Your word, O Lord,” “is to me more precious than thousands of gold and silver pieces.” (Psalm 119:72)
Then, on July 30, 2017, Presentation Sister Donna Demmer shouted in joy, “My treasures lie in the glory of God,” as she celebrated her Golden jubilee. She “gathered the people, entered the feast” with Mass and dinner joined by her family, her Presentation community and other invited guests at the Sisters of the Presentation motherhouse.
Treasuring faith and family while growing up on a farm in Farley, Iowa, Sister Donna, the third child of six, learned from her parents, the late Charles and Martha Jane Kramer Demmer, and her siblings the lessons of partnering and relationships. This nurtured her in deepening her relationships with God and the wider community.
“I am so happy to celebrate Donna’s jubilee,” exclaims Sister Cheryl Demmer. “At some point in her life, God must have asked Donna the same question that he asked Solomon, ‘Ask for anything and I will give it to you!’ It was so very clear to me at Donna’s jubilee as I sat across from my family embracing each and every moment, that Donna must have asked for a ‘genuine-simple’ heart. The entire jubilee day was a celebration of that genuine-simplicity filled with so many grace-filled moments with our community and with our family. Our mom and dad were so much a part of this day. My heart beamed with pride. It was one perfect day!”
As all her siblings, Sister Donna is a graduate of St. Joseph High School in Farley. In 1967, she entered the Sisters of the Presentation. She received her bachelor’s degree in math and elementary education at Clarke University in Dubuque in the spring of 1972 and began teaching that fall. Four years later, Sister Donna professed final vows.
“The readings for this jubilee liturgy speak to me that the kingdom can be found anywhere because it is God. It is the love among us,” reflects Sister Donna. “I am most passionate about the need to help others to be good leaders and role models in the future so they will take an active part in making the world a place of peace, respect and justice.”
Celebrant and homilist, Father William Joensen reflects how all are called to “invite God to be God” and to be open to the wonder and joy “that there is no one like you.” That God partners with humans is reflected in Sister Donna’s life, he states. A self-described tomboy, she was drawn to tractors more than dolls and learned responsibility and how to work with others by doing chores. She saw the witness of God’s love in her Presentation Sisters-teachers and in Father Jack Dalton who brought communion to their home when her Dad was sick. She learned the witness of social justice in her grade school teacher Father Ray Hermann who gave his life ministering to the poor in Bolivia.
“A child-like joy to be happy with little as described by Pope Francis in Laudato Si’,” states Father Joensen, “makes us grateful that God is the treasure, God is the pearl of great price.” This is Sister Donna’s expression of gratitude as she celebrates her jubilee. God became incarnate for the poor and God’s promise is the way of hospitality, room for all at the table. With simple trust, spirit led faith in God’s word, we can live in right relationship to all, concludes Father Joensen.
Currently, Sister Donna teaches and serves on several committees at Resurrection Elementary School in Dubuque where she has been serving since 1989. Previously Sister Donna taught in Catholic elementary schools in Iowa at St. Columbkille, Dubuque; St. Mary, Humboldt; St. Mary, Storm Lake; and at St. Germaine, Oak Lawn, Illinois.
“This jubilee celebration is a time to reflect on the treasures that I have in my life – the treasures of faith, family, friends, community and associates,” says Sister Donna. “Through relationships and friendships with those I have and do work with now I am gifted with the passion to live the mission of Jesus. They encourage me to share my gifts and talents. Working with children and seeing their compassion and support for others gives me the energy to love what I do each day.”
Sister Donna serves as a Eucharistic minister and as a member of the arts and environment committee for the Church of the Resurrection. In addition, she is a member of the Catholic Sisters for a Healthy Earth task group made up of representatives from congregations of women religious from the upper Mississippi River Valley in eastern Iowa and southwestern Wisconsin. The group’s intention is to take a new look at how all that humans are and do is interconnected and tied to the well-being of all living things.
“As a woman religious and as a teacher, I find the kingdom of heaven by offering a warm welcome, encouraging others to be their best and seeing the good in others,” shares Sister Donna. “Through my ministry of teaching, I hope each day that those with whom I come in contact will come to see that having God, they have everything. As Solomon asked not for riches but for an understanding heart, I pray and hope others will come to know what is right and just.”
60th Jubilarians
Hailing from Harpers Ferry, Iowa, a river town, where neighbors have century-long family relationships and reach out to one another, Sister Kay Cota grew up in a salt-of-the-earth family of nine children of which she is the youngest. Her mother, a quiet, hard-working woman operated out of the motto: “There’s always room for one more,” when her husband brought home guests for dinner. It would just have been nice, however, to know about it ahead of time!
After high school Kay moved to Milwaukee to work. There she met a friend who planned to enter a Franciscan community. Kay, likewise, hoped to be a religious sister and work in an orphanage, so she visited the Milwaukee motherhouse with her friend and decided to enter there as well. But when she informed Father Leonard, her pastor and family friend, he strongly urged her to join the Sisters of the Presentation where Sister Lou, Kay’s older sister, was already a member.
Ever more insistent Father Leonard invited Sister Helen Marie Feeney to visit with Kay. Sister Helen Marie promptly and definitively countered all Kay’s reasons for being a Franciscan, and provided more persuasive rationale for joining the Dubuque Presentation Sisters. Gifted with a rosary from Father Leonard and a ride to Dubuque, plus two spools of thread (a white and a black) from her mother, Kay arrived at Mount Loretto.
It was with Father Leonard’s persistence and Sister Helen Marie’s rebuttals resounding in her ears that Kay continued her sojourn.
In the breaking of the bread their eyes were opened – Seeing
Three young women: oldest daughter, youngest daughter, only daughter, professionally trained to teach, later found themselves challenged by Gospel values, opened their eyes and hearts to new expressions of ministry, their gifts used in new ways to meet emerging needs. These ministry changes gifted them, the Presentation community and those they served with transformative grace.
As if it hadn’t been enough to earn a master’s degree in business education and counseling from Catholic University and spend 30 years teaching high school students bookkeeping, typing and shorthand, Sister Jeanette taught herself to speak Spanish during her last three years of high school instruction. Equipped with her self-taught guitar skills and pages of Spanish hymns, Sister Jeanette was prepared to go where the needs of Hispanic sisters and brothers in Sioux City called loudly. Bolstered by a summer visit to Argentina and Bolivia, she offered pastoral ministry to the Spanish-speaking in western Iowa, later in Texas, and at St. Patrick parish in Dubuque. Sister Jeanette’s language facility afforded her opportunity for this new ministry. She described Hispanic ministry as a “breath of fresh air,” her experiences yielding abundant joy in her life.
Sister Janice demonstrated much versatility and perseverance in her ministry changes: as a receptionist in a variety of settings, assuming several roles in publishing companies, culminating in 10 years of ministry with Catholic Charities, most recently as an administrative assistant. With her zest for life, her love for people and her desire to be of service, Sister Janice delighted in opportunities to use her ingenuity, creativity and compassion – to step one pace beyond for others on a daily basis, transforming her and those fortunate enough to meet her.
Sister Kay, who majored in sociology in college, had endured teaching! But when the opportunity at a social service agency in St. Paul, Minnesota, arose, she found her nitch, working with the unemployed as a receptionist and secretary matching peoples’ gifts with employment opportunities. Advocating for those less-fortunate and differently-abled, her heart had found home. For Sister Kay this opportunity proved transformative, and liberating. Today she continues to follow her eye for photography, her love for nature and her commitment and concern for the earth and earth justice.
As they approached the village, they urged him “Stay with us.”
In lively conversation, the disciples arrived, having trekked seven miles to their destination. Approaching the village, the visitor gave the impression that he was going farther but the disciples pressed him to “stay” with them, “for the day was far spent and it was nearly evening.”
For the jubilarians, hospitality is home. For Sister Kay, hospitality is “innate,” an essential part of her home and family life – and beautifully confirmed in her daily example of simple living. Sister Janice keeps in touch, going out of her way to maintain relationships even those that date back to high school. Knowing struggle in several dimensions of her life, her outgoing personality compels her to reach out to others. No wonder she knows half the population of Dubuque. Sister Jeanette considered it important to learn the language of the people, as a courtesy to them, an avenue for hospitality, complemented by her friendly nature.
These jubilarians, women of wide welcome, have sojourned with faithful hearts, seen with new eyes and stayed/companioned with a longing to be transformed.
Reflection by Sister Joan Lickteig
Hailing from Harpers Ferry, Iowa, a river town, where neighbors have century-long family relationships and reach out to one another, Sister Kay Cota grew up in a salt-of-the-earth family of nine children of which she is the youngest. Her mother, a quiet, hard-working woman operated out of the motto: “There’s always room for one more,” when her husband brought home guests for dinner. It would just have been nice, however, to know about it ahead of time!
After high school Kay moved to Milwaukee to work. There she met a friend who planned to enter a Franciscan community. Kay, likewise, hoped to be a religious sister and work in an orphanage, so she visited the Milwaukee motherhouse with her friend and decided to enter there as well. But when she informed Father Leonard, her pastor and family friend, he strongly urged her to join the Sisters of the Presentation where Sister Lou, Kay’s older sister, was already a member.
Ever more insistent Father Leonard invited Sister Helen Marie Feeney to visit with Kay. Sister Helen Marie promptly and definitively countered all Kay’s reasons for being a Franciscan, and provided more persuasive rationale for joining the Dubuque Presentation Sisters. Gifted with a rosary from Father Leonard and a ride to Dubuque, plus two spools of thread (a white and a black) from her mother, Kay arrived at Mount Loretto.
It was with Father Leonard’s persistence and Sister Helen Marie’s rebuttals resounding in her ears that Kay continued her sojourn.
In the breaking of the bread their eyes were opened – Seeing
Three young women: oldest daughter, youngest daughter, only daughter, professionally trained to teach, later found themselves challenged by Gospel values, opened their eyes and hearts to new expressions of ministry, their gifts used in new ways to meet emerging needs. These ministry changes gifted them, the Presentation community and those they served with transformative grace.
As if it hadn’t been enough to earn a master’s degree in business education and counseling from Catholic University and spend 30 years teaching high school students bookkeeping, typing and shorthand, Sister Jeanette taught herself to speak Spanish during her last three years of high school instruction. Equipped with her self-taught guitar skills and pages of Spanish hymns, Sister Jeanette was prepared to go where the needs of Hispanic sisters and brothers in Sioux City called loudly. Bolstered by a summer visit to Argentina and Bolivia, she offered pastoral ministry to the Spanish-speaking in western Iowa, later in Texas, and at St. Patrick parish in Dubuque. Sister Jeanette’s language facility afforded her opportunity for this new ministry. She described Hispanic ministry as a “breath of fresh air,” her experiences yielding abundant joy in her life.
Sister Janice demonstrated much versatility and perseverance in her ministry changes: as a receptionist in a variety of settings, assuming several roles in publishing companies, culminating in 10 years of ministry with Catholic Charities, most recently as an administrative assistant. With her zest for life, her love for people and her desire to be of service, Sister Janice delighted in opportunities to use her ingenuity, creativity and compassion – to step one pace beyond for others on a daily basis, transforming her and those fortunate enough to meet her.
Sister Kay, who majored in sociology in college, had endured teaching! But when the opportunity at a social service agency in St. Paul, Minnesota, arose, she found her nitch, working with the unemployed as a receptionist and secretary matching peoples’ gifts with employment opportunities. Advocating for those less-fortunate and differently-abled, her heart had found home. For Sister Kay this opportunity proved transformative, and liberating. Today she continues to follow her eye for photography, her love for nature and her commitment and concern for the earth and earth justice.
As they approached the village, they urged him “Stay with us.”
In lively conversation, the disciples arrived, having trekked seven miles to their destination. Approaching the village, the visitor gave the impression that he was going farther but the disciples pressed him to “stay” with them, “for the day was far spent and it was nearly evening.”
For the jubilarians, hospitality is home. For Sister Kay, hospitality is “innate,” an essential part of her home and family life – and beautifully confirmed in her daily example of simple living. Sister Janice keeps in touch, going out of her way to maintain relationships even those that date back to high school. Knowing struggle in several dimensions of her life, her outgoing personality compels her to reach out to others. No wonder she knows half the population of Dubuque. Sister Jeanette considered it important to learn the language of the people, as a courtesy to them, an avenue for hospitality, complemented by her friendly nature.
These jubilarians, women of wide welcome, have sojourned with faithful hearts, seen with new eyes and stayed/companioned with a longing to be transformed.
Reflection by Sister Joan Lickteig
Hailing from Harpers Ferry, Iowa, a river town, where neighbors have century-long family relationships and reach out to one another, Sister Kay Cota grew up in a salt-of-the-earth family of nine children of which she is the youngest. Her mother, a quiet, hard-working woman operated out of the motto: “There’s always room for one more,” when her husband brought home guests for dinner. It would just have been nice, however, to know about it ahead of time!
After high school Kay moved to Milwaukee to work. There she met a friend who planned to enter a Franciscan community. Kay, likewise, hoped to be a religious sister and work in an orphanage, so she visited the Milwaukee motherhouse with her friend and decided to enter there as well. But when she informed Father Leonard, her pastor and family friend, he strongly urged her to join the Sisters of the Presentation where Sister Lou, Kay’s older sister, was already a member.
Ever more insistent Father Leonard invited Sister Helen Marie Feeney to visit with Kay. Sister Helen Marie promptly and definitively countered all Kay’s reasons for being a Franciscan, and provided more persuasive rationale for joining the Dubuque Presentation Sisters. Gifted with a rosary from Father Leonard and a ride to Dubuque, plus two spools of thread (a white and a black) from her mother, Kay arrived at Mount Loretto.
It was with Father Leonard’s persistence and Sister Helen Marie’s rebuttals resounding in her ears that Kay continued her sojourn.
In the breaking of the bread their eyes were opened – Seeing
Three young women: oldest daughter, youngest daughter, only daughter, professionally trained to teach, later found themselves challenged by Gospel values, opened their eyes and hearts to new expressions of ministry, their gifts used in new ways to meet emerging needs. These ministry changes gifted them, the Presentation community and those they served with transformative grace.
As if it hadn’t been enough to earn a master’s degree in business education and counseling from Catholic University and spend 30 years teaching high school students bookkeeping, typing and shorthand, Sister Jeanette taught herself to speak Spanish during her last three years of high school instruction. Equipped with her self-taught guitar skills and pages of Spanish hymns, Sister Jeanette was prepared to go where the needs of Hispanic sisters and brothers in Sioux City called loudly. Bolstered by a summer visit to Argentina and Bolivia, she offered pastoral ministry to the Spanish-speaking in western Iowa, later in Texas, and at St. Patrick parish in Dubuque. Sister Jeanette’s language facility afforded her opportunity for this new ministry. She described Hispanic ministry as a “breath of fresh air,” her experiences yielding abundant joy in her life.
Sister Janice demonstrated much versatility and perseverance in her ministry changes: as a receptionist in a variety of settings, assuming several roles in publishing companies, culminating in 10 years of ministry with Catholic Charities, most recently as an administrative assistant. With her zest for life, her love for people and her desire to be of service, Sister Janice delighted in opportunities to use her ingenuity, creativity and compassion – to step one pace beyond for others on a daily basis, transforming her and those fortunate enough to meet her.
Sister Kay, who majored in sociology in college, had endured teaching! But when the opportunity at a social service agency in St. Paul, Minnesota, arose, she found her nitch, working with the unemployed as a receptionist and secretary matching peoples’ gifts with employment opportunities. Advocating for those less-fortunate and differently-abled, her heart had found home. For Sister Kay this opportunity proved transformative, and liberating. Today she continues to follow her eye for photography, her love for nature and her commitment and concern for the earth and earth justice.
As they approached the village, they urged him “Stay with us.”
In lively conversation, the disciples arrived, having trekked seven miles to their destination. Approaching the village, the visitor gave the impression that he was going farther but the disciples pressed him to “stay” with them, “for the day was far spent and it was nearly evening.”
For the jubilarians, hospitality is home. For Sister Kay, hospitality is “innate,” an essential part of her home and family life – and beautifully confirmed in her daily example of simple living. Sister Janice keeps in touch, going out of her way to maintain relationships even those that date back to high school. Knowing struggle in several dimensions of her life, her outgoing personality compels her to reach out to others. No wonder she knows half the population of Dubuque. Sister Jeanette considered it important to learn the language of the people, as a courtesy to them, an avenue for hospitality, complemented by her friendly nature.
These jubilarians, women of wide welcome, have sojourned with faithful hearts, seen with new eyes and stayed/companioned with a longing to be transformed.
Reflection by Sister Joan Lickteig
