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Sister Carmel O’Callaghan, PBVM, has served Catholic schools and parishes for 51 years. The Retirement Fund for Religious collection Dec. 13-14 assists those who have done much for us.
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By Carol Baass Sowa
Today's Catholic
SAN ANTONIO • It was an exciting time in Ireland at the Presentation Sisters’ convent in County Cork in 1951 — an excitement that spilled over into the high school there taught by the sisters. Bishops from the United States, including Archbishop Robert E. Lucey of San Antonio, had come to Ireland seeking sisters to teach in Catholic schools back in their communities and three Presentation sisters from the future Sister Carmel O’Callaghan’s school and convent had answered the call.
“I was in the middle of high school,” remembers Sister Carmel O’Callaghan, PBVM, who grew up on her family’s farm, “and the sister who taught me, Sister Cecelia, she told us everything that was happening, all the planning.” It was quite an undertaking, she recalls, as travel was slow in those days, not everyone had phones and there were shots and other legalities that had to be gone through.
The idea of a religious vocation had crossed her mind as a teenager, but for a while she pushed it aside to enjoy the typical teenage life. She finally said “yes,” influenced by the letters and personal invitation to “come join them” from her former teacher and the other sisters who had traveled to teach in San Antonio at the new St Gregory’s. “She was so excited about coming,” said Sister Carmel.
She began her novitiate at the age of 17 in Ireland, but was soon on her way to Texas, arriving in 1957. “Coming to San Antonio or any mission country in those days,” she remembers, “we came with the plan not to return home.” This was hard on her parents, but she reminded them of the words of St. Matthew, “Whoever leaves father and mother and home for my sake and the sake of the Gospel will have a hundred fold in this life and life everlasting.” These words, always dear to her heart, became her motto.
She made her first profession in San Antonio in 1958 and would go on to earn a bachelor’s degree and, eventually, a master’s in pastoral studies, becoming one of the first three nuns appointed to serve as pastoral associates here.
Her first assignment was teaching at St. Gregory the Great Catholic School for 10 years, followed by 25 years at St. Thomas More School and then back to St. Gregory’s for the past 16 years as pastoral associate.
When the first Presentation Sisters arrived in San Antonio — and for many years thereafter, they still wore the long, black habits they had in Ireland, Sister Carmel noted, and adapting to the Texas heat took some doing. “We didn’t have A/C at the convent; we didn’t have A/C at the school,” she remembers. “In fact, the first years we came here, we didn’t even have a fan.”
Vatican II changed all that, allowing modification of the habit and, as far as Sister Carmel is concerned, it was all for the better. “I think it was a time for change,” she said. “I was happy with the habit, but these habits were not suitable for Texas.”
During her teaching career, Sister Carmel taught first through sixth grade and thoroughly loved it. She especially enjoyed storytelling and having the students dramatize the subjects she taught, her favorite subjects being history, geography and religion.
Her history classes visited the state capitol, sitting in on legislative sessions, and wrote first person biographies of the presidents, dressing in costume and taking on the character of their chosen president to answer questions from their classmates. “I always tried to make it alive through projects,” she added.
Her religion classes always included the lives of the saints, whom she tried to make “real” for the students, and she enjoyed directing them in dramatizations of the Easter and Christmas stories. For reading class, she would seek out award-winning children’s books at the library for the children to read, and she also introduced her sixth graders to Shakespeare, leading one class in a presentation of Macbeth complete with costumes.
As a CCD teacher at St. Thomas More, preparing the children in doing liturgies to which their parents were invited was especially dear to her heart, with each class getting to prepare a Mass. “But,” she reflects, “there were a lot more priests then. You can hardly do it today.”
Another hat she wore was that of youth group director, supervising the young folks on outings to the coast and Garner State Park, as well as high school retreats.
The Irish culture is dear to her heart and she was a founding member and elected first secretary of San Antonio’s Irish Cultural Society, a group dedicated to supporting authentic Irish culture — its music, dance, history, literature and story-telling. Sister Carmel is an accomplished Irish cook as well, noted for her Irish bread.
Always foremost in her life though has been her vocation and to anyone considering a religious vocation she says, “If you feel God is calling you, come. You will never regret it.” She adds, “I’ve been happy. Never once regretted my vocation.”
Like other sisters in religious orders, up until recent times, Sister Carmel, who celebrated her 50th jubilee this year, worked for a stipend, rather than a salary to make Catholic education affordable. “So that parishes don’t have to pay everything,” she explains.
“We always felt there was going to be somebody, young nuns after us, to help take care of us,” she said. “But that didn’t happen. That changed.” With no earlier savings or retirement in place to fall back on, many aging religious depend on the generosity of those they have served over the years, and Catholics in the Archdiocese of San Antonio will have an opportunity to assist the weekend of Dec. 13-14, through the special Retirement Fund for Religious collection in their parishes.
Sister Carmel is not planning on retiring any time soon, however. For the past 16 years she has served as a pastoral associate at St. Gregory the Great, where she was involved in the RCIA program and continues to minister to the sick and the bereaved. And she looks forward to continuing this “as long as I have health and strength.”