Sister Eugene Marie Schneider turns 100
Above: Sister Eugene Marie (center) and Sister Emeline (right) smile at each other after everyone sings “Happy Birthday.” (Photo by Sister Norise Kaiser)
By Elizabeth Landry, staff writer
Meeting and learning about the Sisters Schneider — biological sisters and Sisters of St. Francis, Emeline and Eugene Marie, ages 102 and 100, respectively — one can hardly believe their age.
The sisters are “very young for their age, full of life. [They] love what they do,” described Sister Grace Michael Souza, their longtime minister. “They’re up and around all of the time. They take walks every day all around the building. … [They] talk to everyone — very friendly — love praying, very spiritual. They’re unbelievable.”
Sisters Eugene Marie, Emeline and Grace Michael were gathered with many other Sisters of St. Francis and a few beloved friends in the dining room at the Franciscan Villa in Liverpool on May 14 to celebrate Eugene Marie’s 100th birthday.
The Sisters Schneider are treasured by and have made an impact on the community of sisters at the Franciscan Villa. “To me, the thing they have taught is to trust in God and be happy,” Sister Grace Michael said. “They’re always happy. They do a lot … They set an example for all of us, for our future. As we’re all getting older, we can look to them and say, it doesn’t mean stop — you just do things differently.”
Speaking with the Sun during her milestone birthday celebration, Sister Eugene Marie echoed the sentiments of Sister Grace Michael. When asked about the secret to a long, healthy life, she didn’t mince words: “Be energetic, don’t be lazy. Get out there and walk. Exercise. Don’t eat stupid stuff.”
Sister Eugene Marie shared that she followed in her older sister’s footsteps in becoming a Sister of St. Francis. “I never intended to be a nun. I was always going to be a nurse,” Sister Eugene Marie said. “And I saw how happy [Emeline] was — I was a boarder at the boarding school … so I thought, ‘that might not be a bad idea.’”
Now, in her 100th year, she has lived a life devoted to God as a Sister of St. Francis for 82 years.
When asked about her fondest memories of her ministries, she highlighted her time as a teacher. “The children I’ve taught — they have been so faithful over the years. I taught them in kindergarten and I still hear from them — beautiful, wonderful children. The friends I’ve had over the years, the adventures I’ve had — there’s no comparison,” Sister said.
She taught students in many places around the country: Hoboken, New Brunswick and Riverside in New Jersey; Albany, NY; Lorraine, Ohio; California and Florida. The relationships she built with her students were enduring — sitting at the dining room table with her was a former student, along with his wife and grown children.
Although her life has been full of joy and love for her sisters, her students and for God, there was undoubtedly sadness in her childhood. When she was 10 and Emeline was 12, their mother passed away, leaving their father to raise them. He was very supportive of their call to the sisterhood.
“It was whatever we wanted. ‘That was your life,’ [he said]. And he willingly gave us to the Lord,” Sister Eugene Marie recalled.
She shared an important memory from 2005 that’s linked with the remembrance of her mother.
“A miracle happened in my life when Mother Marianne [Cope] was going to be beatified. Our Reverend Mother said she put all the names in a lottery, 500 of us [sisters], and she could only send 15 [to the beatification]. So on April the third, she drew the names. And she called me at my mission and she said, ‘Sister Eugene Marie, we just pulled out number 10. You’re going to Rome.’ And I thought, ‘Oh, nice.’ But then, wait a minute … ‘We just pulled out number 12: Sister Emeline is going.’”
Sister Eugene Marie attributes both herself and her sister being selected to attend the beatification to the suffering her mother endured the year before she passed away, which she offered up for her two daughters.
And there’s one more serendipitous twist to the story. She recalled that the month before the beatification, Pope Saint John Paul II passed away. The new pope, Benedict XVI, decided to have the beatification on May 14, rather than the day after, which was Pentecost Sunday.
“And that’s my birthday,” said Sister. “So we spent my 70th birthday in Rome for the beatification of Mother Marianne. That was a miracle.”
Thirty years later, to the day, Sister Eugene Marie offers this advice to younger sisters who will follow in her footsteps: “Listen to the Lord. He will inspire you [on] what to do.”
