Stirring Her Skills & Self-Esteem

CAROLYN STAUFFER FERRENCE | MOUNT ASSISI ACADEMY 1966

Throughout Women’s History Month, our alumnae are honoring members of the School Sisters of St. Francis
who touched their lives back then and who they consider to have been especially influential in who they are now.

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THEN

Sister Bonaventure (Melichar) made a great impact on my life when I had her as a history teacher and speech and debate sponsor from 1963 to 1966. I was so intrigued by her colorful presentation of history that I requested to teach her Problems of Democracy & Economics class for the Pennsylvania Young Educators Association assignment.

In addition to her fostering my career choice, she strongly influenced my self-esteem in coaching me in speech and debate. I carried these skills into my 41-year career in English, speech and Drama education. I have been retired for 10 years, but I still reminisce about my years in the classroom, thanks to Sister Bonaventure.

Now

Carolyn lives in Upper Burrell, Pa. She has one daughter — also a teacher — and four grandchildren.

After teaching social studies and Latin at “The Mount” for 13 years. Sister Bonaventure — who later returned to her baptismal name, Sister Anna Catherine Melichar — taught at LaRoche College in Pittsburgh (now LaRoche University), served at our mission in Chile, and taught for 12 years at St. Francis Academy in San Antonio, Texas. Well-versed in the Czech and Slovak languages, she taught English to our Sisters in the Czech and Slovak Republics after the fall of Communism in the 1990s. Even after retiring in 1995, Sister Anna Catherine remained active by collecting items for the missions. Having entered the convent at the tender age of 14, she was our community’s eldest member when she died in 2015, just two months shy of her 100th birthday.

read more then & now features

A Soft-Spoken Voice Still Echoes | Setting a Fine Example | ‘Angel’ Among Them
Home Away from Home | A Critical Lifeline | Eye-Opening Influence
Laughter That’s Lasted a Lifetime | Before the Parade Passes By
The ‘Type’ of Teacher She Needed | Women of Strength & Influence