Coming Home: A Reflection on Association
by Associate Christine Olsem
On All Saints Day 2011, four months after being hired by the BVMs, I experienced my first liturgy in the Motherhouse chapel. While listening to the necrology, I gazed around the room and was overwhelmed with emotion as I reflected upon the lives of the sisters and their years of faithful, humble, and loving service. I came to Mount Carmel wounded and lost after 28 years of teaching, but somehow felt at home.
I spent the next year becoming acquainted with more sisters and the history of the congregation. Time and time again the BVMs demonstrated an ability to trust God’s love to live without fear even through the most difficult circumstances. These courageous women were awe-inspiring.
Soon after I began discernment for association, I met with an old friend. After sharing the happenings in my life, she commented, “Christine, you seem to be finding your own voice.”
In great part, this is due to the religious women I am surrounded by daily. This community both supports my spirituality and encourages and challenges me to continued spiritual growth through living the core values of freedom, education, charity, and justice.
What excites me about association right now are the “We Believe” statements. They provide clarity about association that unites us now and will help create a mission focus and purpose for the future. Our divided world is hungry for the BVM charism, the core values, and the wisdom of Mary Frances Clarke.
One favorite memory with BVMs and associates is the evening in November 2021 when BVMs LaDonna Manternach and Karen Conover, Associates Norm and Marabeth Freund, Andy Schroeder, Sherry Jacobs with husband Steve, Suzie Wright, and I gathered at the Freund house to record music for the weekly Advent prayer recordings. Liturgical music is my passion. That night was the first time since before the COVID pandemic that I experienced the joy of playing guitar and singing with a group of musicians.
Another wonderful memory occurred just weeks later when LaDonna and I recorded “Angels We Have Heard on High” to be shared with the BVM Community for Christmas. I treasure that video because we are cousins. We have shared memories of attending Clarke University, teaching at Marquette Catholic in Bellevue, Iowa, singing with the Dubuque Archdiocesan Chorale, and working in the BVM Congregational offices. It was lovely to add one more memory.