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Happening ... in the Local Church
 Sister
Rosie visits Joanne Prieshoff, a member of St. Joseph Parish, Elwood,
during her recent hospital stay. (Photos by Lisa Wilson-Cotillier) |
 Physical
therapist Jessica Tharpe and Sister Rosie talk at St. Vincent Mercy
Hospital in Elwood, where Sister has worked for 14 years. |
Elwood Chamber of Commerce recognizes her service to the community.
By Lisa Wilson-Cotillier
The Catholic Moment
ELWOOD
— Sister Rosie Coughlin’s shoes get a lot of wear.
Four days a week she can be found at St. Vincent Mercy Hospital, where she brings friendship, a listening ear, and comfort to all. She leads the chaplain’s office and carries on the mission of the Congregation of St. Joseph, the sisters who founded the hospital more than 80 years ago.
She was recently honored with the Raeburn O’Malley Cannon Citizen of the Year Award, given by the Elwood Chamber of Commerce.
“Sister Rosie was chosen because of everything she does for the community,” said Melissa Alfrey, executive director. “She does it silently, never expecting to receive applause for what she does.”
The award is presented annually to community volunteers and is named in honor of Cannon, who served as a volunteer tutor and was active in numerous community-based organizations.
“Nominees are brought to our attention at our annual meeting,” Alfrey said. “Sister Rosie was among two nominees, and we chose her to receive the award because we are blessed to have her in our community serving the people, and we wanted to give her the applause she so deserves.”
Sister Rosie was born in 1930 and attended St. Joseph School in Kentland. She completed her high school education at St. Joseph Academy, Tipton, and entered the convent during her senior year. She recently celebrated her 60th anniversary as a religious.
She has worked at the hospital for 14 years. Her love for the hospital and her dedication to its calling — to serve all people, with special attention to those who are poor and vulnerable — is evident in her daily work.
“I know that she helps comfort our patients,” said Judy McShane, medication access coordinator. “She is always willing to talk to anyone who needs a listening ear. It’s been a joy to get to know her. She’s very compassionate and in her you see a lot of the character of Christ. How much more can you say about a person?”
Sister Rosie brings Communion to the sick and counsels patients and their loved ones. She serves Catholics and people of all denominations, as well as those who have no church affiliation.
“I looked forward to Sister Rosie’s visits,” said 85-year-old Anna Pedro, a former patient “She was just so very nice to me. She would bring me Holy Communion, and that was just wonderful for me. I may be 85, but Communion is very important to me.
“She made me feel like someone cared for me,” she said. “When you’re in the hospital, it’s so important to know that someone cares. She would pray with me, give me a blessing, and do whatever she could do to make me feel better.”
She helped to make a sculpture of “Joseph and Jesus — Father and Son,” which greets those entering the main lobby of the hospital.
“She’s always a good friend, a good listener and she loves everyone for who they are,” said Fran Hoffman, a parishioner of St. Joseph Church, Elwood.
“She is wonderful in her work,” she said. “She’s just wonderful with the patients and their families, especially if someone is dying. She’s very reassuring to them. She is also very aware of things that affect our world, and she cares deeply for the poor.”
“Sister Rosie is very faithful to the hospital, very faithful to the mission, and very grateful for her community’s presence in the hospital for all these years,” said Father Paul Cochran, pastor of St. Joseph Church. “She is very faithful about visiting people, and is a very good minister at the hospital.”
Sister Rosie is grateful to have received the award, but prefers to focus on her work and continue the mission of her congregation and the hospital.
She gives credit to God alone.
“I have been greatly loved in my life, which has made it possible to share that love,” she said. “I know that any good anyone does, myself included, is only because we are channels of God’s grace. We are just the conduits, but isn’t that a gift?”