Sister Gabriel First to Celebrate 75 Years with Uniontown
Province
Uniontown - PA - As the Sisters of St. Basil began final preparations for
the 68th Annual Pilgrimage in honor of Our Lady of Perpetual Help, Sister
Gabriel (Martha) Kollar, OSBM, marked her 75th anniversary in religious life
as a member of the Community. At age 93, she is the first in the Uniontown
Province to reach that milestone.
To put that in perspective, when Sister Gabriel entered the Community from
Ss. Cyril & Methodius parish in Olyphant (PA) in 1927, Mother Macrina,
Foundress of Our Lady of Perpetual Help Province, had just been elected its
first Superior; the Motherhouse and Novitiate had just moved to Factoryville
(PA) from Cleveland (OH). Calvin Coolidge was President of the United
States; Thomas Masaryk was elected President of Czechoslovakia; Charles
Lindbergh completed the first solo transatlantic flight; the first Model A
Ford sold for $385; The “Jazz Singer”, the first movie with a soundtrack,
opened in New York; and the first public transatlantic telephone calls were
made – a three minute call from New York to London cost $75.
Sister Gabriel was among 11 members of the Community honored for their long
service and dedication to the Church, the Province and the people of the
Byzantine Ruthenian Metropolia at two Jubilee celebrations in August. These
Jubilarians represent a combined total of 600 years of monastic life and
ministry.
Along with Sister Gabriel’s Diamond Anniversary, four Sisters observed major
Golden and Silver Jubilees at a special Divine Liturgy in the Monastery
Chapel on Sunday, August 4. Archbishop Basil M. Schott was the principal
celebrant of the Divine Liturgy with Rev. Innokentij Stikhin, Monastery
Chaplain, concelebrating. A dinner with members of the Community, families
and friends followed. Sister Valeria (Helen Louise) Evanyo, Sister Eleanor
Soroka, and Sister Dolores Ann Vanischak commemorated the 50th anniversary
of their entrance into religious life, while Sister Susan Sisko marked her
25th anniversary.
In his homily, Archbishop Schott reflected on how each of the five women
honored have given their lives, with their unique gifts and personalities,
“to serve the Church and to point you and me to the Messiah.” On a personal
note, he added that Sister Gabriel had been his first grade teacher.
“We are all just a vehicle to lead others to Jesus Christ,” the Archbishop
said. “Monastic life gives these wonderful gifts of poverty, chastity and
obedience which free us to direct people to the Messiah who is Jesus Christ.
We are thankful to these Jubilarians for all of their ministry, and we
rejoice with them.”
Six more Jubilarians also were honored at a special Divine Liturgy
celebrated by Rev. Innokentij Stikhin and followed by a reception on
Tuesday, August 6, during Community Days at the Monastery. Sister Irene
Hoizan, Sister Vera (Olga) Stanchec, and Sister Melanie (Mary) Wanat
celebrated 70 years of monastic life; Sister Maria Petruska commemorated 60
years; and Sister Ruth Plante, current Provincial, and Sister Elizabeth Jane
Tepley observed 40 years as members of the Community.
In his homily for the August 6th celebration, Father Stikhin focused on the
two different concepts of time represented by two separate Greek words:
chronos and kairos. Chronos denotes a more measurable unit associated with
worldly affairs and conducting the business of life. The word chronology,
for example, refers to specific dates and the sequence of events. Kairos, on
the other hand, is more relative and less confining, denoting a special time
dedicated to God; a time for creation and creativity, such as poetry and
art. Kairos is the time we enter into the celebration of the Divine Liturgy,
putting aside all earthly cares.
The time spent in monastic vocation is kairos as well, because “only God
knows the right duration of time spent in His service”, Father Stikhin said,
and because “the monastic life is not only about the life of the one in
consecrated life, but also about the lives of other. It is about praying for
the world, about climbing the mountain of Divine Love.”
May God grant to the Sister Jubilarians many more years of happy, fruitful
service!
The Jubilarians
Diamond
Currently a resident at Mount Macrina Manor on the Monastery grounds, Sister
Gabriel (Martha) Kollar spent a majority of her active apostolate in
education beginning at St. Nicholas Orphanage in Elmhurst (PA). She holds a
Bachelor of Arts degree in English and Social Studies from Marywood
University in Scranton (PA) and served as principal in several assignments
over her many years of service throughout Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New
York. Sister Gabriel especially enjoyed teaching music and directing
students in operettas and plays. In addition to Archbishop Schott, many of
her students entered the priesthood and religious life. “My greatest
pleasure was to be able to bring Christ to His Children,” she said. Sister
Gabriel is also well known for the handcrafted articles and novelties she
designed and produced. Her work was popular among those attending the annual
Labor Day Pilgrimage and at the Manor. Today, she continues the prayer
ministry of the Community at the Manor and brings comfort to other residents
through her daily visits. The youngest of eight children, Sister Gabriel is
one of three to serve as Basilians. Her late brother, Father Sylvester, OSBM,
was a member of the American Province at Glen Cove, Long Island (NY); her
late sister, Sister Josaphat, entered the Basilian order six years before
her and was one of the founding members of the Uniontown Province.
Golden
Sister Valeria (Helen Louise) Evanyo, a former member of St. John the
Baptist Church on the South Side of Pittsburgh (PA), holds a Bachelor of
Science degree in Elementary Education from Misericordia College in Dallas
(PA), and Master’s degree from Duquesne University in Pittsburgh. She taught
elementary and special education in Connecticut, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio,
New Jersey and Pennsylvania and served as principal in several assignments.
Through the 1980s, Sister Valeria was assigned to the Vatican Secretariate
in Rome, Italy, and returned to Rome in the early 1990s as Generalate
Secretary, working part time at the Vatican as well. A current member of the
Provincial Council, Sister Valeria, also served as Development Directress
for the Community in the mid-1990s. Since 1997, she has been Personal
Secretary to the Bishop in the Eparchy of Parma (OH).
A graduate of the liberal arts program at Marywood University in Scranton
(PA), Sister Eleanor Soroka worked as a reporter for the Scrantonian and
Tribune in Scranton before entering the Community. A former member of St.
Nicholas Church in Old Forge (PA), she obtained a Bachelor of Science degree
in education from Duquesne University in Pittsburgh and a Master’s degree in
education from De Paul University in Chicago (IL). Sister Eleanor taught for
nearly 30 years before beginning a related but new apostolate in counseling.
Her service in elementary and high school education included schools in
Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, and Pennsylvania. She served at Mount St. Macrina
Retreat Center in the mid-1980s and has been active in adult counseling with
various social services since 1984, working with crime victims and with
those recovering from addictions, including residents of Another Way, a
22-bed recovery home for women at Mount St. Macrina. She also serves as the
Assistant to the Community’s Basilian Associate Directress.
Sister Dolores Ann Vanischak joined the Community from Ss. Peter & Paul
Church in Braddock (PA). An alumna of Mount St. Macrina Academy, she
received nursing training at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh and taught in
parish schools in Connecticut, Ohio and Pennsylvania. She also is a former
tutor of English as a second language through the Adult Literacy Council in
Uniontown. Since 1984, she has been in charge of the Monastery Library and
assists part time with receptionist duties. Sister Dolores Ann also is very
active in the Fayette County Chapter of the Multiple Sclerosis Society, one
of the Society’s most energetic chapters, having served alternately as its
President and Secretary for many years.
Silver
A vocation from St. John the Baptist Church in Trumbull (CT), Sister Susan
Sisko obtained her undergraduate degree from Duquesne University in
Pittsburgh, majoring in Psychology with minor studies in Sociology and
Education. She later earned a Master’s degree in Liturgical Studies at The
University of Notre Dame in South Bend (IN). Sister Susan began her
apostolate in education teaching elementary grades and serving as principal
in parish schools in Ohio, Pennsylvania and New Jersey before serving as
Theology Department Chair and teaching Theology and Psychology at Cardinal
Mooney High School in Sarasota (FL). In 1998, she was appointed Assistant
Principal at the school, which has an enrollment of over 600 students.
During her tenure in Florida, Sister Susan also has served as head of the
Youth Ministry Program at St. Therese Church in St. Petersburg (FL), and as
a member of the Bishop’s Committee for the Diocese of Venice, which trains
Eucharistic Ministers and Lectors. She also has given numerous Diocesan
workshops on Catechetics, Liturgy, and Youth Ministry.
70th Jubilee
Sister Irene Hoizan, a former member of St. Mary’s Church in Dunmore (PA),
has served in various apostolates in Ohio and Pennsylvania, including at Ss.
Cyril & Methodius Byzantine Catholic Seminary in Pittsburgh and St. Basil’s
Home at Mount St. Macrina. She also worked with Ryznica, the Ecclesiastical
Sewing Department at the Monastery, making vestments and chalice cloths for
many years and continues that apostolate part time today. She also remains
active in the prayer ministry of the Community.
Entering the Community from St. Mary’s Church in Hazleton (PA), Sister Vera
(Olga) Stanchec holds Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Education from
Duquesne University in Pittsburgh and Fairfield University in Connecticut,
respectively. Her 35-year apostolate in education included Mount St. Macrina
Academy and parish schools in Connecticut, Illinois, Ohio, New Jersey and
Pennsylvania in both a teaching and administrative capacity. Sister Vera
served a five-year term as Provincial Secretary beginning in 1965. Since
1985, she has served in various full and part time positions at Mount
Macrina Manor, including receptionist and in the Medical Records department.
Sister Melanie (Mary) Wanat from St. Michael’s Church in Mont Clare (PA)
holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Education from Misericordia College in
Dallas (PA) and a Master’s degree in Elementary Education from Marywood
University in Scranton (PA). She taught for 40 years in parish schools in
Ohio, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. Sister Melanie also served at St.
Basil’s Home at Mount St. Macrina, Ss. Cyril & Methodius Byzantine Catholic
Seminary in Pittsburgh, and in various capacities at the Monastery including
Sacristan.
60th Jubilee
Sister Maria Petruska entered the Community from St. Mary’s Church in
Mahanoy City (PA). She obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in English,
Secondary Education from Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, and later earned
a Master’s degree from John Carroll University in Cleveland (OH). Sister
Maria taught at the elementary and secondary levels in parish schools in
Connecticut, Indiana, Ohio, New Jersey and Pennsylvania through the 1970s
and at the Fayette Campus of Penn State University in Uniontown. In the
1980s, she continued her education apostolate on an international level,
teaching at the University of Bethlehem in Israel, Father Duenas Memorial
High School in Agana (Guam), St. Joseph International School in Yokohama
(Japan) and at the Oldonyo Sambu Seminary in Arusha, Tanzania (Africa). In
residence at the Monastery, she has served as a tutor with the Adult
Literacy Council, specializing in English as a second language, working with
new immigrants from Asian countries in particular, such as China and
Vietnam.
40th Jubilee
Sister Ruth Plante, Provincial, is from St. John the Baptist parish in
Bridgeport/Trumbull (CT). She received her Bachelor’s degree in Secondary
Education and French from the University of Pittsburgh. Her education
apostolate spanned 22 years with service at both the elementary and
secondary levels in teaching and administration in Ohio and Pennsylvania.
Sister Ruth served as a member of the Provincial Council through the first
half of the 1990s. She also worked in parish ministry in Connecticut and as
an Education Consultant to the Community. Sister Ruth is currently in her
second five-year term as Provincial Superior of the Sisters of St. Basil in
Uniontown.
A former member of St. Mary’s Church in Trauger (PA), Sister Elizabeth Jane
Tepley received her Bachelor’s degree from Misericordia College in Dallas
(PA) and her Master’s degree in Education from the University of Dayton
(OH). She served parish schools in Connecticut, New Jersey, Ohio, and
Pennsylvania for 23 years as both a teacher and principal, before entering a
second apostolate as a pastoral minister. Sister Elizabeth Jane currently
assists in various capacities at the Monastery.
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