SisterJulia Mae Groulx

As I celebrate 70 years as a Grand Rapids Dominican, I ask God to bless my family, my Dominican community, and all who have nurtured and formed me into the person I am today. I am grateful for the love, joy, and peace I experience as I contemplate all of creation - always remembering and rejoicing in the words “Eye has not seen, ear has not heard what God has ready for those who love...”

I, Catherine Julia, was born in 1926 to William and Catherine Badour Groulx in Munger, Michigan. I was the first in my family to attend high school, graduating at the top of my class. After attending Bay City Junior College, I taught in a one-room school at Arn Station in Bay County.

In 1949, I entered the Grand Rapids Dominicans and in 1950, at Reception, I received the name Sister Julia Mae of the Holy Ghost. While teaching in several Michigan cities, I earned an MA in Education and an MA in Religious Education. I also served as school principal while teaching for three years in Belen, New Mexico.

While spending a year in Japan in 1989, I taught English Conversation at the Heisel Foreign Language Institute, living in a small apartment in Onga-Gun and enjoying the local culture.

From 1990 to 1996 I was a live-in companion to two older women. This prepared me for a ministry at Saints Peter and Paul Parish in Ionia, Michigan, where I worked as Bereavement Ministry Coordinator. I retired to Marywood in 2008 and spend my time reading and working on my computer.

Thank You, Sr. Julia Mae

Sister Julia Mae Groulx holds a special place in my heart and I think of her often. I attended Holy Rosary Academy in Bay City Michigan, grades K through 8, 1968-1977. Coming from a dysfunctional divorced family, Sister Julia Mae was so kind to me, made me feel that she cared. ~ Elizabeth Anderson