†Sister Mary DeHaus, OP

MONUMENT
I do not want a marble stone
To rest upon my head
Marking that I was once alive
Who now am dead.
But when the larkspur blooms again
In brilliant flames of blue,
Let someone think of me and say,
“She loved it, too.”

This poem by Sister Mary reflects so well her delicate and loving approach to all life. She was so finely attuned to God’s creation be it a person, a bird, a flower, a weed, a bug, or water, and her gentleness of manner admirably bespoke this fine sensitivity.

It was in Grand Rapids on St. Valentine’s Day, 1916, that Sister Mary became the sixth of the two boys and five girls born to William and Mary Riegling De Haus. Her father was born in the Netherlands; her mother in Grand Rapids. St. Alphonsus Church was the scene of her baptism, February 29, 1916, and she received the name of Mary Theresa. Mary was blessed to be a member of a wonderful Christian family that was blessed with three daughters in religious life.

Mary had Dominican Sisters as teachers at St. Alphonsus School and at Catholic Central. When Mary completed her high school, the depression was still rampant and her Franciscan aunt. a hospital supervisor in Milwaukee, invited Mary to come there for employment in the lab.

Mary’s oldest sister Regina (Sister Rose Imelde) who had been almost a second mother to Mary, had entered our Community the year Mary began the fourth grade. Mary made up her mind to be a Dominican then, however, Mary says she did not refer to it and through the years often tried to forget it but it was always there. She stated, “I worked in Milwaukee for three years but finally followed the persistent little buzz in the back of my head.” But “the buzz” was a bit complex – she was strongly drawn to the Franciscans where her sister Margaret (Sister Audrey) had entered. Nevertheless, in the fall of 1937, Mary entered Marywood where Sister Fabian MacDonald was in charge of the novitiate. Mary received the habit and the name of Sister Ligouri of the Blessed Virgin on August 6, 1938. She was known as Sister Ligouri until 1967 when she chose to return to her baptismal name. She pronounced her First Profession of Vows to Mother Euphrasia Sullivan on August 16, 1939.

Sister Mary began her ministry in 1940 . Twenty-nine of her almost fifty years in the active apostolate were spent as an elementary, high school, and religious education teacher. The schools where she taught were: St. Anne, Alpena; Sacred Heart, Mt. Pleasant; Mary’s Schools, Carrollton and Zilwaukee; St. Mary Magdalen, Melvindale; St. Andrew, Grand Rapids; Marywood; SS. Peter and Paul, Saginaw; Catholic Central, Alpena; and Bishop Borgess High School, Detroit. Sister Mary was a creative English and Biology teacher who had excellent rapport with her students.

In 1969 Sister Mary embarked on what she termed her “second career” which took her to the following places: Pioneer Memorial Hospital, Brawley, California; Nazareth Hospital, Albuquerque, New Mexico; and Aquinas College, Grand Rapids. In these ministries, as in her teaching, her soft spoken voice and her keen attention and interest in others endeared her to all.

Sister Mary’s pioneer experiences included serving at Mary’s Schools which involved released time and/or teaching before and after the regular school day. She was appointed Superior of the first group of our Sisters assigned to the newly opened Bishop Borgess High School which was an experiment in inter-community staffing and inter-community convent living. Of her ministry at Aquinas College Continuing Education Department, her administrator wrote, “Sister Mary is very successful in her responsibilities because of the fine personal characteristics she has as a lady, a religious, and as an administrator.”

Sister Mary had gifts that were not confined to teaching, hospital work, or advising. She was par excellence a poet and a writer. Most of her poems, plays for elementary children, and her articles have been published. In the 1950s she and Sister Marie Dominica Viesnoraitis wrote two texts for Bishop Haas’ Faith by Mail Program, one of which was later translated into Spanish. These materials were used extensively by other catechists in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. In 1977 she co-authored Response with Sister Harriet Sanborn which was a response to our one hundred years of being present to the People of God in Michigan.

Sister was a person with whom it was a joy to live and work, and she was realistic about the realities of community living and sharing. In a recent brief autobiography she commented, “Like everyone else I have had my share of ups and downs… And on special occasions when we are crowded in the chapel singing Sister Albertina’s hymn, small pains and anxieties disappear in my overwhelming gratitude and joy and pride in my Community.” However, there were two occasions when Sister Mary’s staunch faith and trust were especially tried. In 1962 her dear sister, Sister Rose Imelde, was one of our five Sisters killed in a tragic automobile accident. During her last year at Aquinas College (1985-86), where she had been a Continuing Education advisor she suffered a heart attack which was to alter her lifestyle. She did recuperate and was happy to minister as part-time secretary at Aquinata Hall.

Sister Mary wrote in her autobiography, “I have always loved reading… I have always loved nature, too, and I hope there will be meadows in heaven where people like me can roam and dream for hundreds of years.” At the time of her Golden Jubilee in 1988 she shared this, “Looking back at this time, recalling moments almost forgotten, I feel a deep sense of gratitude for things that have been: for the love of my family and friends and my supportive Community. I thank God for His loving care. Dag Hammarskjold says it perfectly:

“For all that has been, Thanks. For all that will be, Yes.”

May our dear Sister Mary who enjoyed life and all its beauty now enjoy to the full God and all heaven’s everlasting beauty. ALLELUIA!