Sister Mary Charlotte Barton- 70th Jubilee

Written on: April 4, 2016

Sister Mary Charlotte first encountered the Grey Nuns in elementary school in Lowell, Massachusetts. In the Grey Nuns, she saw a love of children, kindness, refinement and personal attention to the needs of those they encountered. Her journey as a woman religious led her to walk many different ministry paths, elementary and secondary teacher and president of  D’Youville College in Buffalo, New York where she served for 11 years before being elected President of the Grey Nuns in 1979. Following her years in leadership, she became Archivist, collecting and preserving photographs, and artifacts of Grey Nun history. She continues to serve in the Archives as Assistant to the present Archivist. She enjoys her work there as well as her retirement at Holy Redeemer Lafayette Retirement Community where she lives with other Grey Nuns.

These 70 years have been an amazing revelation of God’s overwhelming presence at each stage of my religious life. In retrospect, I believe that the support of the sisters in my community, the enrichment from those in the various areas of service to which I have been called, and growth in spirituality have been gifts for which I will be eternally grateful. I have lived through the  extraordinary changes in our Church following Vatican Council II, and the serious quest among religious orders of women for meeting the special societal needs of our times, especially on the behalf of the poor and those most in need. This has challenged me to seek God with ever more trust amidst rapidly shifting life situations. This Jubilee celebration during the Year of Mercy proclaimed by Pope Francis is a unique time to thank God for His gracious love and a humbling reminder that God is never outdone in generosity. For all that has been I am overwhelmingly grateful! Praising God in song has been a joy of my life, and I ask your prayers that the song will go on today and for all eternity. May all of you who have shared these years with me, be wondrously blessed and brought to the fullness of the joy promised to those who live in hope of God’s promises.

This entry was posted in Our 2016 Jubilarians and tagged: Archivist, gracious love, Lowell Massachusetts, poor, Pope Francis, praising God, preserving history, President of DYouville College, President of the Grey Nuns, societal needs of our times, song, teacher, Vatican Council II, Year of Mercy