Three Sisters of Mercy celebrate jubilees

These Sisters of Mercy of the West Midwest Community celebrated their jubilees on June 11 at Sacred Heart Convent in Cedar Rapids. As Religious Sisters of Mercy they have contributed to Cedar Rapids and other parts of Iowa.

They are:

Sister Genevieve Birchard, 75th jubilee

Sister Genevieve Birchard is celebrating her 75th jubilee. She was born in 1920 in Hazelton and graduated from high school in 1938. She became a Sister of Mercy in 1941 and started teaching high school in 1943 at Immaculate Conception in Cedar Rapids. From 1947 to 1955, she was a high school teacher at Sacred Heart in Waterloo, Immaculate Conception in Charles City and Cedar Rapids.

In 1950, she received a bachelor's degree from the University of Iowa. In 1958, she earned a master's in economics from Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wis. From 1955 to 1959, she was principal of Immaculate Conception School in Elma. From 1959 through 1962, she served at the high school at St. Joseph in DeWitt and Columbus High School in Waterloo. She worked at Mount Mercy College as a business manager and assistant professor from 1962 to 1974. From 1975 through 1990, Birchard was a secretary and business manager at Catholic Education Center in Minneapolis, Minn. She retired in 2001.

Sister Marilyn Ward, 50th jubilee

Sister Marilyn Ward celebrated her 50th jubilee. She is the daughter of Larry and Mary Ward of Kalispell, Mont. She entered the Sisters of Mercy on Sept. 8, 1967, pronounced her final vows as a Sister of Mercy on July 30, 1973 in her home parish of St. Matthew's Kalispell.

Ward earned her Bachelor of Science from Mount Mercy College in Cedar Rapids and her master's in education administration from the University of Northern Iowa. She was an elementary teacher at St. Patrick, Garryowen in 1973; All Saints, Cedar Rapids in 1974; St. Joseph, Marion in 1976; Principal of St. Patrick School, Anamosa in 1984. She also taught at Our Lady of Grace in Edina, Minn. in 1979. Ward served as archivist for the Sisters of Mercy 1981 to 2000. She now is the director of volunteer services and archivist at Mercy Medical Center in Cedar Rapids.

Sister Susan Widdel, 50th jubilee

The oldest of 12 children, Sister Susan Widdel spent her childhood in Waterloo. She attended Sacred Heart Grade School, where she met the Sisters of Mercy, and Columbus High School. She entered the Sisters of Mercy on Sept. 8, 1967.She earned her bachelor's degree at Mount Mercy College in 1972 and taught in the following schools: Immaculate Conception in Cedar Rapids, St. Cecilia in Ames, St. Patrick in Garryowen, St. Nicholas in Evansdale, and Sacred Heart in Waterloo.

In 1981, she began to work in parish ministry. She earned her master's degree in parish ministry in 1991 from St. Joseph College in West Hartford, Conn. She has served in the following parishes: St. John in Independence; St. Thomas the Apostle in Crystal Lake, Ill.; Christ the King in Des Moines; and St. Patrick in Cedar Falls. She is now serving at Our Lady's Immaculate Heart in Ankeny.

In 1997 to 1998, she was on sabbatical and studied massage therapy and was a licensed therapist for 10 years.