Remembering Sister Barbarine Houdek, OSF

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Sister Barbarine Houdek (Sister Mary Leonard) died in the hospital on October 10, 2023, just a little over of month before her 98th birthday. She was helped to eat a good meal, smiling and happy, then put her hand out to signal she was finished, laid her head back on the pillow and died within minutes. The joy and peace she showed in life remained her gift at the end.

Helen Barbarine was born on Thanksgiving Day in Calmar, Iowa on November 26, 1925, to Elizabeth (Pletka) and Leonard Houdek. She grew up with her brother, Bernard, who preceded her in death. When she was young the family moved to Chicago where she attended St. Cyril and Methodius Grade School. Her high school years were spent at St. Francis Academy. She graduated from the College of St. Francis in Joliet and went on to earn her MA in Theatre Arts from Northern Illinois University in DeKalb, Illinois.

Barbarine taught primary grades for thirty years in various parishes in Illinois and Ohio until she had the chance to follow her lifetime dream to be involved in theatre. In 1975 she began her Master in Theatre Arts and was able to join several theatre groups.

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If you would like to make a donation in honor of Sister Barbarine or another Joliet Franciscan Sister, please click here:  Remembering our Deceased Sisters.

Remembering Sister Mary Jo Young, OSF

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Sister Mary Jo Young was so full of life! She stepped courageously into eternal life on September 27, 2023. Mary Jo was multi-talented, intelligent, friendly, talkative, caring and funny. She was a superb educator, mentor and organizer who loved to read, knit, teach, garden, travel, bake, sing, visit, and beat Jeopardy contestants at their own game. She loved God, her family, friends, community members and students. Mary Jo loved her life. When it threatened to be taken from her, she refused to describe the challenge of cancer as a “battle.” “In battles there are winners and losers,” she said. “I don’t want to see it that way. I am on a journey with cancer, and I’ll see where it leads and what I will learn along the way.”

Mary Jo’s journey through life began on November 28, 1943, in Blue Island, Illinois, when she was born to Eleanor (Okutowski) and Kenneth Young. One older brother helped to welcome her into life. Eventually, she became the big sister to seven more siblings. From a very funny father and a very patient mother, she learned humor, tolerance, dedication to work, strong faith, a sense of responsibility and enduring values. It was hard to leave her family when she felt called to the Joliet Franciscans, but she had an aunt and two cousins in the community and another joining her, so she was surrounded by family both in and out of the Congregation. When she became a postulant in 1961, Mary Jo embraced 24 classmates and quickly began to build lifelong friendships.

Read More About Sister Mary Jo’s Life

If you would like to make a donation in honor of Sister Mary Jo or another Joliet Franciscan Sister, please click here:  Remembering our Deceased Sisters.