The Sisters of St. Joseph of Rochester provided the Catholic Courier with the following biographical information on sisters who are celebrating milestone jubilees in 2025.
75 Years
Sister Johnson: Ministered in education, elder care
Sister Marion Johnson (formerly Sister Joan Michael) entered the congregation from St. John the Evangelist in Greece.
“My call to religious life came at a rather young age,” Sister Johnson recalled. “Having had many encounters with the Sisters of St. Joseph in grade school and high school, the call became stronger and clearer each year. Now, as I celebrate my 75th year, I know that my call to serve God and his people was, and is, a commitment which continues to grow each year.”
Sister Johnson ministered in education at Sacred Heart Cathedral, Rochester; St. Paul, Oswego; Christ the King, Irondequoit; St. Rose, Lima; St. Jerome, East Rochester; St. Theodore, Gates; and All Saints Junior High, Rochester.
She later worked with Sisters Care, the former SSJ ministry that aided the elderly.
“As schools consolidated or closed, I felt called to devote my energies to those at the other end of life’s spectrum — working with the elderly was truly a need of our time,” she said. “Now I am enjoying community at the motherhouse.”
70 Years
Sister Gulino: Educator, chaplain, pastoral assistant
Sister Barbara Gulino (formerly Sister Fidelis) spent 18 years teaching elementary students in the Diocese of Rochester after earning her education degree at Nazareth College.
When Irondequoit’s Christ the King School opened in 1957, Sister Gulino was missioned there with two experienced teachers and one other novice.
“It was a good beginning working with the laypeople of Irondequoit to form a new community,” she reflected.
She then went on to teach at Sacred Heart, Rochester.
“(Auxiliary) Bishop (Lawrence B.) Casey lived there, and it was a vibrant parish with 1,400 students in the school,” she recalled.
Other years brought her to Elmira, Dansville, Our Lady of Perpetual Help (Rochester), St. Thomas More (Irondequoit) and Immaculate Conception (Rochester), where she became familiar with urban culture.
When Immaculate Conception School closed, her desire to work in another area surfaced. She began her journey into hospital ministry through a program at Massachusetts General Hospital. Once she earned her membership in the National Association of Catholic Chaplains, Sister Gulino became the first woman chaplain at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Elmira. At that time, the hospital made a big investment into rehabilitation services, which was just coming into its own.
“Many good experiences came from ministering to patients and staff of all ages,” she noted.
Later in Rochester, she used her pastoral skills at Blessed Sacrament Parish as a pastoral assistant working with newcomers. When the overnight center closed, She initiated the idea of a new outreach and worked with parishioners until the Supper Program was born — a program which remains open today.
She then moved back to a chaplaincy position at St. Mary’s Hospital in Rochester to work with the Daughters of Charity until their departure in the 2000. A merger between St. Mary’s and Park Ridge brought about Unity Hospital, which resulted in Sister Gulino working with other departments and personnel.
In 2004, Sister Gulino formally retired. However, she has since followed her passion for helping those less fortunate by volunteering at Bethany House, Mary’s Place, and Saint’s Place, as well as promoting social-justice issues through the SSJ Justice and Care for Creation Office.
Sister Poole: Ministered with elderly and in geriatric health care
“One of the many times I have been surrounded by the majestic Adirondack high peaks, I felt especially moved,” recalled Sister Loretta Poole. “I sensed the ‘Spirit of the Lord was — upon me.’ A desire arose in me to live my life in the Divine Presence of the Creator of this beauty.
“The trail head that beckoned led to the Sisters of St. Joseph. Happy trails that followed led me into ministries mainly with elderly people and in geriatric health care.
“At the outset of my religious life, I thought about serving others. It soon became clear that others were extending support and care for me! This helped me to realize the value and importance of loving relationships and mutuality.
“Living in community, I thrive on the atmosphere of spiritual encouragement, which instills an interior freedom, peace and gratitude.
“These experiences lead me into a ‘future full of hope.’”
Sister Poole’s ministries have included Corpus Christi, Rochester; Holy Trinity, Webster; St. Elizabeth in Selma, Ala.; St. Ann’s Home, Rochester; St. Mary Church, Rochester; St. Joseph Hospital, Elmira; Park Ridge Hospital, Rochester; St. Joseph’s Neighborhood Center, Rochester; and the former SSJ Sisters Care. Currently, she ministers in motherhouse service.
60 Years
Sister Bickford: Teacher, worked in accounting
“I entered the Sisters of St. Joseph of the Diocese of Ogdensburg and later transferred to the Sisters of St. Joseph of the Diocese of Rochester,” said Sister Constance Bickford (formerly Sister Mary Alma)
“God has led me to a variety of ministries during my 60 years. I served in Catholic education for 22 years as a junior-high teacher. I enjoyed the independence and curiosity of these students. A whole new area opened when I joined the finance office staff of the congregation. The transition from classroom teacher to team member, from math and science to accounting, from worksheets to spreadsheets was both challenging and rewarding. In another change of direction, I was invited to serve as resident staff at Cobblestone Springs Retreat Center in Dundee, N.Y. While there, I volunteered for Literacy Volunteers of Ontario Yates County. Most recently, I have been a tutor at Nazareth Elementary School. One of my greatest joys is when ‘the light goes on,’ and a student understands.
“Through my life’s many twists and turns, challenge and gifts, I recall John Henry Newman’s words, ‘So long Thy power has blest me. Sure, it still will lead me on.’ (Lead, Kindly Light.) And for 60 years, God has!”
Sister Fletcher: Teacher, served medically fragile children
“The Sisters of St. Joseph have been a part of my life since I was young,” recalled Sister Kathleen Fletcher (formerly Sister Thomas Ann). I was taught by the sisters in grammar school at St. Augustine (Rochester) and in high school at St. Agnes (Rochester). When I was in high school, I decided to enter the convent. From the time I was young, I wanted to be a teacher. I loved my years of teaching, over 30 years in many of our elementary schools. Then I worked for several years at Morning Star and Daystar with medically fragile infants and children, and then with the elderly population at our former ministry Sisters Care. Currently I am involved in motherhouse service.
“I have been blessed over the years with wonderful support from family, friends and many sisters.”
Sister LeValley: Served in leadership, ministers to the underserved
“After serving on the SSJ Leadership Team for 16 years, I worked on developing institutions serving the economic needs of the underserved,” said Sister Elizabeth Anne “Beth” LeValley. “Recently, I am totally into our core meanings as Sisters of St. Joseph, aiming for mutual loving union with God and all neighbors without distinction. I firmly believe this is the counter to the unfortunate divides in our world today and the clear marginalizing of so many neighbors. We are to know people by name and story — quite a journey for a 60th year!”
Sister LeValley founded the Progressive Neighborhood Credit Union, Rochester’s first low-income credit union, as well as the Community Micro Enterprise Center, which helps small enterprises transform into small businesses. She also continues to serve in various ways through the Greater Rochester Community of Churches Faith in Action Network, the Burial and End of Life Initiatives and the Rochester Police Department’s Homeless Outreach Team.
Sister Marvin: Ministered in elementary education and in Brazil
“I can truly say that my life as a Sister of St. Joseph has been marked by joy,” said Sister Anne Marvin (formerly Sister Christian). “I even enjoyed most of the novitiate experience! For 29 years, I taught in diocesan Catholic schools in St. Patrick’s, Mount Morris; St. Francis de Sales, Geneva; Our Lady of Perpetual Help, Rochester; and St Mary’s, Waterloo. I spent so much time teaching seventh grade that I still feel like a 12-year-old!
“Then, I felt another vocational call. The result this time was that I found myself on a plane going to Brazil. During these years, my understanding and love of religious life has grown. In 2009, Sister Suzanna Wills and I answered a request to join two sisters from two other religious congregations to live in a remote part of Brazil that has never known women religious. One day, speaking at an assembly of religious about this experience, I heard myself say, ‘If religious life had never existed, I would have had to invent it.’ So much joy!”
Sister Marvin returned to Rochester in 2023 after 25 years of shared life and mission in Brazil and currently ministers in motherhouse service.
Sister Schantz: Was a teacher and a hospital chaplain
Throughout her years of vowed life with the Sisters of St. Joseph, Sister Susan Schantz (formerly Sister Robert Marion) has been thankful for the support of her sisters and her family. She says they have kept her rooted in faith and love.
“God has shared amazing graces with us, especially through times of family, congregational and church crisis,” she said.
Sister Schantz has ministered in education, teaching at St. Alphonsus, Auburn; St. Ambrose and St. Agnes, Rochester; and Siena Catholic Academy, Brighton. She also was the chaplain at Highland Hospital in Rochester. Currently, she ministers in motherhouse service.
50 Years
Sister Alderman: Teacher, counselor, spiritual director
“I taught math at St. Agnes High School and to junior-high students at St. Anne’s School in Rochester,” recalled Sister Anne Alderman. “While I was teaching, I became a member of the receiving community at Spirit House, a therapeutic community for sisters. After St. Agnes closed, I studied counseling psychology and did counseling with the Catholic Family Center in Avon, Livonia and Geneseo, at Spirit House, and then out of an office at the motherhouse.
“I helped to renovate and found Cobblestone Springs Retreat Center in Dundee and moved there in 1997. At Cobblestone, we were surrounded by Mennonite farms and horse-drawn buggies. My love of the country was reignited there! I began offering spiritual direction and retreats to those who came to Cobblestone.
“In 2020, I moved to Trumansburg and began doing spiritual direction there and in Elmira and Geneva. I am striving to continue the SSJ presence among people who had sisters ministering in their communities for many decades.
“I have been blessed with many wonderful relationships in each of my ministries. The small town of Dundee and several people who live there and many who attended St. Andrew’s Church have touched me deeply.”
Tags: Religious Orders, Sisters of St. Joseph
