Sister Mary Kay Finneran Honored For Service

By KATHRYN MORAN, Special To The Bulletin

Published: October 16, 2003

ATLANTA—Growing up in a five-bedroom apartment in New York City shared by her parents, two sisters, brother, grandmother and uncle, the word community has always had a profound meaning in Mary Kay Finneran’s life.

As a seventh- and eighth-grader at Immaculate Conception School in Manhattan, she marveled at a new kind of community—the Sisters of Charity. They seemed to love living and working together and defined for Finneran a “real sense of community.”

Finneran decided to join the convent of the Sisters of Charity on Sept. 8, 1956, and made her final profession on March 11, 1964. She then belonged to a community of faith that exemplified a new word, “charity,” which profoundly directed her life.

Since arriving in Atlanta in 1979, Sister Finneran has been dedicated to living out her vows by helping the needy of the communities here, whether it is family, medical patients, youth, the poor or the sick. She has touched many lives in Atlanta and will be returning to her faith community of the Sisters of Charity in New York City this fall.

As a way of honoring her dedication and service in Atlanta and saying goodbye, a special liturgy, celebrated by Msgr. Richard Lopez, and a dinner will be held at St. Pius X High School on Oct. 30.

During the celebration, two funds will be established to continue the work and remember the spirit of service that Sister Finneran defined. The Cedar Hill Sister Mary Kay Program and Scholarship Fund will provide support for women’s spiritual journeys through Cedar Hill programs, and the St. Vincent de Paul Sister Mary Kay Client Assistance Fund will provide support for programs serving those in need. Both organizations are co-sponsoring the event. At least 250 are expected to attend.

The theme for the evening was chosen by Sister Finneran and is a tribute to her real understanding of service to the community. From the monks of Weston Priory, the theme reads, “There is an energy in us which makes things happen when the paths of other persons touch ours and we have to be there and let it happen.”

For the past six years of her 24 years in Atlanta, Sister Finneran has worked with the St. Vincent de Paul Society (SVdP) and the people they help. These experiences have been some of the most rewarding of her life.

She began her job with the SVdP as coordinator of member services where she worked with volunteer training at the parish level and also created a client (those in need) education program (which later gave her the title director of conference services). She recalls starting the client education program by saying, “We were giving them the fish but needed to teach them how to fish.”

She worked to set up volunteers to teach classes in Life Skills, English as a Second Language and computer use to clients.

These training sessions remain immensely popular and valuable for those who otherwise lack the opportunity to acquire these skills. Advertised by word of mouth, fliers, public libraries and the Department of Health, the program was part of the reason the SVdP Atlanta Council Office needed to move to larger office space in 2000.

Sister Finneran reflects on the education program as “a living organism that grows and develops and changes lives one at a time.” It is one aspect of providing a comprehensive solution to community problems. Everyone at the SVdP Society knows that it takes many facets to help provide a real solution.

She sings the praises of her fellow colleagues calling them “phenomenal people” who have a truly “holistic approach to people’s physical, emotional and spiritual needs.” Her colleagues speak of her as one of the most committed people they know.

Sheila Bissonnette, executive director for the SVdP Society Atlanta Council, recruited her years ago when she saw the tremendous work she was doing in creating a community outreach service program at St. Pius X High School.

Mark Karell, director of communications at SVdP, said, “She has such a fire and commitment for not settling for things the way they are but finding what really works, not at others’ expense.”

Sister Connie Thompson, RGS, an office assistant at SVdP, struggles to find the words to express how much Sister Finneran has meant to her and the dedication she has for helping others. “She is giving and humble and really lives up to what her vocation is. She is truly zealous for others,” said Sister Thompson.

On entering Sister Finneran’s office, her zeal for her work and the community she knows and loves in Atlanta is apparent. A purpose-filled, comforting room with a rolodex of invaluable resources, the room contains books to help her achieve and be inspired, pictures of children and relatives, a few quotes—one reading, “problems are opportunities in disguise”—and a large framed poem called The Invitation, by an Indian elder, Oriah Mountain Dreamer. This poem indicates her passion.

“It doesn’t interest me what you do for a living. I want to know what you ache for. And if you dare to dream of meeting your heart’s longing. It doesn’t interest me if the story you’re telling me is true. I want to know if you can see beauty even when it is not pretty every day. And if you can source your life only from God’s presence,” an excerpt reads.

As part of the original board, Sister Finneran has also worked closely with the Cedar Hill, a center that provides spiritual enrichment to women and is dedicated to reverence for the earth. “I believe so strongly in what Cedar Hill does…helping maintain deep spirituality,” said Sister Finneran. The Cedar Hill fund established in her name will help women experience a sense of renewal and spirituality who otherwise could not afford it.

Remaining in God’s presence, Sister Finneran has made a faith-filled journey through the many paths in her life that have brought her to realize her life’s passion in helping people in communities with resources for their spiritual, physical and emotional needs.

From the time of her first vows, Sister Finneran realized she wanted to help, requesting to become a nurse. They asked her to teach elementary school, and she did for four years, then going on to St. Vincent’s Hospital Nursing School in Staten Island. She first worked in St. Vincent Hospital and then in the Convent of Mary the Queen (Home for Retired Sisters) in Yonkers, N.Y., as director of nursing.

While researching Third World countries and talking with fellow sister, Bobby Ford, she realized she ultimately wanted to make a difference in a poor region of Peru called Altipalno, working with the Aymara Indians (the only tribe the Incas did not conquer.) Her request was approved, and she flew to Bolivia to study Spanish for three months before settling in to help the Aymara Indians learn many basic health principles.

While Sister Finneran went to Peru to help teach hands-on public health, she ended up learning some of the most valuable things of her life from the people there. “I learned the importance of family, community and celebrating…as poor as these people were they always celebrated,” recalled Sister Finneran.

In 1979 Sister Finneran returned from Peru for a visit and to help her sister through “a rough time.” She ended up staying, first pursuing nursing and then working in campus ministry at St. Pius X High School.

She created the community service outreach program so that students would begin to understand the importance of giving back to their communities by helping those in need. Students were provided the opportunity to help with such organizations as Habitat for Humanity, St. Francis Table, St. Nicholas House, SVdP and many more.

“Kids who have so much can see ways to contribute their time and talent,” said Sister Finneran about community service outreach.

While her work at St. Pius X was rewarding, she wanted to reach a broader community and have more direct contact with those in need. Remembering a conversation she had with Bissonnette, she decided to pursue a career opportunity with SVdP, whose cornerstone of service is person-to-person contact through home visits. “I like making a difference. The resources, time and talent is there… we just need to connect the resources with the need… as a staff each brings their own special gift to make it come together,” said Sister Finneran. She hopes to find a ministry in New York City that will allow her to work with the community, become a part of it—to “be there and let it happen.”

To honor Sister Finneran and the spirit of her ministry or to make a donation to the funds in her name, contact Mary Davison at (770) 576-4076 or e-mail her at mdavison@svdpatl.org.

The celebration will be held Thursday, Oct. 30, with the liturgy starting at 6 p.m. and the dinner at 7:30 p.m. at St. Pius X High School. The suggested donation is $25.