of Jesus, Mary, Joseph
(Mary Kubiak)
January 29, 1907 – January 30, 2004
Sacred Heart Province
Des Plaines, Illinois
“May Jesus, Mary and Joseph dwell with you and fill you with their spirit.” (Words of Mother Foundress)
Sister M. Emelia was born on the 29th of January in 1907, the second of ten children born to Elizabeth (Mirkowska) and Martin Kubiak. The family lived on the south side of Chicago next door to St. Michael the Archangel Parish, where they were neighbors to the priests and religious who ministered there. She was baptized on the 3rd of February and given the name of Mary. In 1921 Mary completed her elementary education and graduated from St. Michael School. There is no record of the next several years until the 27th of August 1925 when she became a postulant in Des Plaines, Illinois. The following year she was accepted into the novitiate on the 6th of July and given the name of Emelia. Two years later on the 18th of July 1928 Sister Emelia made her temporary profession and was immediately assigned to St. Hyacinth School where she began her ministry as a teacher. She taught at St. Hyacinth School for the next eight years. During that time she completed her high school education obtaining a diploma from Holy Family Academy. Sister Emelia made her perpetual profession on August 15, 1934 and chose as her mystery of vows Jesus, Mary, Joseph.
Sister Emelia was engaged in the ministry of teaching from 1928 unti1 1972, a total of forty-eight years, in the Chicagoland area. Most likely, she would have touched the lives of nearly 2000 children during that time. In addition to St. Hyacinth School she was also assigned to Holy Trinity, St. Ann, St. Hedwig, St. Adalbert, St. Joseph Mission, St. Camillus, St. Andrew the Apostle in Calumet City, St. John the Baptist in Harvey, and St. Ann. Sister Emelia taught at the primary level and was remembered as providing tender, motherly care to her pupils.
When her teaching career came to an end, Sister Emelia was assigned to help in the local community at the convent in Argo, where the Sisters taught at St. Blase School. fu 1976 she was assigned to be the portress at Holy Family Academy, where she served for the next ten years. Early in the morning she would be there to greet the students as they arrived for school. Her conversations with them were always cheerful, yet she knew how to gently correct them if necessary. On frigid days she would encourage them to button their coats and put on their gloves and scarves before leaving the building. She was continuing the motherly care she had shown to her little ones when she was teaching.
From early on Sister Emelia was described as a quiet, amiable, prayerful and hard-working person. She was quick to laugh and enjoy a good joke. Sisters remembered her as a vibrant, energetic and fast-paced little woman who scurried from one activity to another always helping and providing whatever was needed to accomplish the task at hand.
While on duty at the Academy Sister Emelia always kept herself busy. Her rosary was her constant companion. Because of the structure of the building, with the convent and school being located in the same building, Sister Emelia often spent long hours away from the community while tending to her duty as portress. This did not seem to bother her even though it meant that she had to often have her meals before the community gathered for theirs. Her favorite snack was crackers and she would always leave the dining room with her pockets full of them to get her through the long hours she spent at the door.
On one occasion, Sister Emelia ventured out to purchase a newspaper on a very windy day. Being tiny and frail, it didn’t take much for a gust of wind to lift her and throw her to the ground. Fortunately, someone came to her rescue to help her up. Being a simple, quiet soul, she could not understand why everyone was so concerned about this incident and warned her about going out alone.
When ill health prevented her from continuing in active duty, Sister Emelia accepted a transfer to Nazarethville, where she acted as a receptionist at the front desk for a time. Slowly, her health began to deteriorate until she became totally incapacitated and dependent upon others for her care. For several years she was unable to make any independent movements apart from closing and opening her eyes, smiling, and saying a few words. During this long ordeal, she was never known to complain or question, even though there were times when pain was evident. She accepted all from a loving God, whom she had loved and served all of her life. Even though she was totally disabled, she could be heard praying quietly, in English, or Polish, or even Latin, as she had done in the earlier years of her religious life.
In the year 2000, Sister Emelia marked seventy-five years in the community. She was unable to attend the festivities in the province and even too ill to remain in the chapel for the celebration at Nazarethville. Several weeks later members of her family came to visit her, sharing in the joy of that milestone.
Sister Emelia endured much suffering during the final years of her journey, yet it seemed from her disposition that she wanted every moment to be meritorious. She rarely complained and her requests were few. Her only pleasure for many years was when someone offered her a hard piece of candy, which helped to soothe her throat during the long hours of the day, as she lay totally dependent and unable to reach for one herself. Sister Emelia passed away on January 30,2004, quietly and peacefully, as she had lived all of her life. A nursing assistant who was ministering to her when she was dying referred to her as an “angel.” As she had been in life, Sister Emelia remained faithful to the very end.
Sister Emelia’s funeral liturgy was celebrated on February 2, 2004, feast of the Presentation of Our Lord. Her eternal homecoming had to be a glorious one as she was presented to God whom she had served faithfully for nearly 80 years. Enjoy the eternal peace of heaven, dear Sister!
Digitized by S. Brendan O'Brien, CSFN
Instructor
School of Arts & Sciences
History Department
Holy Family University
9801 Frankford Avenue
Philadelphia, PA 19114
215-637-7700 x3279
srbrendan@holyfamily.edu
http://web3.holyfamily.edu/srbrendan
Last updated: March 2006