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By Suzanne Haugh, Staff Writer
LAWRENCEVILLE—Grace Uwimfura remembers the struggle of
starting over in the United States with her young daughters, now 6 and 11,
after escaping war-torn Rwanda a few years ago. Faces like those of Sister
Louise Sommer, CSJ, pastoral associate at St. Lawrence Church, made her
adjustment to a new life much gentler.
“She’s always smiling and willing to help—always
beautiful,” she said of Sister Sommer. “Sometimes people say that
nuns need to be shy. No, she is really approachable and takes the time to
listen to you.”
Uwimfura was one of many with a story to tell about Sister Sommer
at a jubilee Mass and celebration in her honor on May 20 at St. Lawrence
Church. Recommitting herself to vows of poverty, chastity and obedience first
spoken 50 years ago, Sister Sommer continues to facilitate, with vigor and
compassion, “encounters with Jesus” as a sister of St. Joseph of
Carondelet.
A long-time educator and pastoral associate in Atlanta, Sister
Sommer first came to Atlanta in 1966 to teach English at St. Pius X High
School. She later returned to St. Louis, her hometown, but came back to Atlanta
in 1985 as the religious education director at Holy Cross Church for five years
and then at Immaculate Heart of Mary Church until 1997. In 1998, she became a
pastoral associate at St. Lawrence Church in Lawrenceville. During her years in
Atlanta she has also served as a resident chaplain at St. Joseph Hospital and
serves today as the spiritual director for the parish Cursillo Ultreya group
and St. Vincent de Paul chapter.
During his introduction of Sister Sommer Father Anthony Curran,
pastor at St. Lawrence, called women Religious “the infrastructure, the
scaffolding on which is built many things.”
“I simply want to say that as a priest, as a pastor of this
place, the older I get, the more I appreciate the formation I had as a child at
the hands of people like Sister Louise.”
Father Curran called her one of the “marvelous women of
faith” serving the church.
In her address to those gathered, Sister Louise reflected on the
Emmaus story proclaimed in the Gospel. “In this encounter with Jesus in
the Eucharist, the disciples’ lives are turned around and their joy is
renewed ... This is the story of our lives—whenever we come together as a
community of faith to celebrate the Eucharist. And today we come from many
communities who have touched my life and nurtured me during the past 50
years.”
Sister Sommer acknowledged her sister Joann and family from St.
Louis, her friends Sister Margaret McAnoy, IHM, and Father Richard Kieran from
Cursillo and many others she has met throughout her life.
“All of us bring within us a unique presence of Christ and
hopefully we open ourselves to the Spirit working in our midst,” she said.
Sister Sommer thanked those who have brought “love and
life” to her and for sharing their faith stories and “the bread of
our lives.” She then shared the vision of her order: living the Gospel
message, celebrating one’s faith through diverse rituals, fostering
inclusiveness, aligning oneself with the marginated or economically poor,
reverencing all creation and integrating the body, mind and spirit.
She renewed her vows, affirming her desire to “(dedicate)
myself totally, in the spirit of charity and humility, to the service of the
people of God...”
Following the Mass, people streamed over to the parish hall for a
reception. Sister McAnoy was among those celebrating the life of her friend,
Sister Sommer, whom she met in 1969.
“She brings a loving compassion, an ability to take people
where they are and an ability to simply be with other people, to just sit and
be what they need her to be,” Sister McAnoy said. “She has a gift for
this, a gift for seeing things very clearly, at least for me. She can see the
ramification for things I can’t many times.”
Sister Sommer will be the first to point out the importance of
having friends among lay people, she said. This was evident by the number of
people attending the event, people like Angela Facchini, whose mother is a
semi-invalid. Sister Sommer helped the St. Lawrence parishioner find a
caretaker support group and worked with her during crises with her mother.
Kevin Boyle first met Sister Sommer through Cursillo.
“She’s got the biggest heart,” he said. “She’s always
smiling and can find humor in any situation.”
Father John Adamski, pastor at Our Lady of Lourdes Church,
Atlanta, has known Sister Sommer for 25 years, working with her in Cursillo. He
called her “the extra pair of hands” and appreciates her readiness to
always pitch in and help.
“She’s just a very generous spirit,” he said.
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