Sister Mary Beth Minkel
Sister Mary Beth Minkel was born in Chicago’s South Side on July 7, 1934. She is the eldest of five children, sharing life with three brothers and one sister.
From the time she was in first grade, she knew that she wanted to become a teacher. Her teachers at St. Augustine School were the Poor Handmaids of Jesus Christ and they inspired her. She loved her teachers so much that when she would get home from school, she would put a towel on her head which was pinned under her chin like the Poor Handmaids. She would line up her dolls, stuffed animals, and her two brothers, and start to “teach them.”
After Mary Beth’s mother had a heart attack, the family moved from their busy Chicago neighborhood to the town of Naperville, Illinois. It was there that Mary Beth met the School Sisters of St. Francis as a seventh grader at Saints Peter and Paul School. The sisters impressed her with their joy and kindness to their students and to each other.
Mary Beth loved going on field trips with the sisters to visit the Motherhouse in Milwaukee and meet the Aspirants and Postulants, as well as some of the other sisters. After completing eighth grade, Mary Beth entered the Aspirancy in 1951. Later she became a Novice, and she received the name Sister Mary Deloretta. Her parents were very proud of her.
Sister Mary Beth loved her 64 years of ministry in education as a teacher, principal, and assistant principal. She recalled that when she began teaching at St. Joseph School in Wilmette in 1953, she was not yet fully educated as a teacher. The principal asked Mary Beth the day before school started whether she was nervous. She “assured the principal she was not nervous.” The principal then said to Sister Mary Beth, “Sister, then you are either ignorant or you are a born teacher!” We now know that after being in education for some 64 years, Mary Beth is a born teacher.
Years in ministry in Chicago at Holy Angels School and Santa Maria Addolorata School really opened Sister Mary Beth’s eyes and heart to working with people of different races and ethnicities. She loved her work with African American families at Holy Angels and with the Mexican community at Santa Maria. She learned so much about teaching and community life from the sisters with whom she lived and taught with at those missions – really, at all of her missions – especially Sister Lorraine Quella and Sister Marian Dahlke.
Mary Beth always enjoys meeting with new people, especialy those who lived in the various Chicago neighborhoods where she lived. She lived in diverse areas and made friends wherever she went, including many former students.
After her years in ministry in Illinois, Sister Mary Beth moved from Chicago to Milwaukee’s St Joseph Convent Living Group in 2017. She now resides at Sacred Heart. She likes to say that her life at Sacred Heart is like a “little piece of heaven.” She appreciates all of the assistance she receives from sisters and staff at this time in her life. She is happy to have the extra time for prayer, meditation, and spiritual reading that she did not have when she was in full-time ministry.
Sister Mary Beth is very open to welcoming young women to join the School Sister of St. Francis community. She, along with Sister Marian Dahlke, opened their home to women who were exploring our community and also to those sisters who were in formation. Reflecting on her 75 years as a School Sister of St. Francis, the advice Sister Mary Beth would give to anyone exploring a vocation with us is, “Give it a try! Come and see.”
We are all very glad that Sister Mary Beth gave the School Sisters a try, and that she is sharing her life and wisdom with us. Congratulations, Sister Mary Beth, on your 75 years as a School; Sister of St. Francis.