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Mercy to unveil portrait of sister
How does one sum up over a century of work? Do what Sr. Mary Concetta Cardinale did: call upon local artist Elaine Buerge.
Shortly before Sr. Concetta retired in 2010, she reached out to Buerge and commissioned her to design and paint a pictorial history of the Sisters of Mercy in Fort Scott. After two years, lots of paint and patience, Buerge's work will be unveiled at 8 a.m. Thursday, Dec. 20 as part of the weekly Fort Scott Area Chamber of Commerce coffee. The enormous piece (four-feet by 15-feet) will grace the main stairwell at Mercy Hospital. The piece depicts the expansion of health care in Southeast Kansas by the Sisters of Mercy.
"It is an honor to display a beautiful work of art that portrays the history and heritage of the Sisters of Mercy," Mercy Hospital President Reta Baker said. "So much of Southeast Kansas' culture has been shaped by Sisters who dedicated their lives to caring for the needs of people. Whether providing health care, nurturing faith or teaching, the Sisters of Mercy were instrumental in building a strong and supportive community."
Prior to 1886, Fort Scott had been without a hospital for 30 years. When two Sisters of Mercy from Michigan made a brief stop in Fort Scott while traveling to California, neither they nor the Rev. Francis J. Watron fathom the impact of their short visit.
During their stay, Watron shared with the ssisters the needs of the people in the area. After learning of these needs the sisters decided not to go to California, but to return to Michigan to request permission to move to Fort Scott where there was a grave need for a school for pioneer children.
One year later, sisters Teresa Dolan and Mary Delores Drew arrived in Fort Scott. They fully intended to start a school as originally planned, only to learn the community was in more desperate need of a hospital. What was once an old, stone church built in 1864 had been reconstructed into a central house of the Sisters of Mercy, and therein, a small, 12-bed hospital was ready for patients. The closest hospital was 90 miles away in Kansas City.
Over the last century whether in the church, schools, hospital, community or nursing school, the presence of the Sisters of Mercy has profoundly impacted the culture of Bourbon and surrounding counties. One hundred twenty-seven sisters served Mercy Hospital Fort Scott from 1887-2010; perhaps a few of the most memorable are Sister Mary Trinity Jackson, religious sisters of Mercy, (1923-2010); Sister Mary Julita Lienhard, RSM, (1921-2012), and Sister Mary Concetta Cardinale, RSM.
Sister Trinity served as Mercy Hospital administrator from 1968-1983. Sister Mary Annrene Brau recalls, "Interestingly, Sister Trinity became associated with Mercy through her goal to become a nurse. As a Piqua, Kan., native, Sister Trinity came to Fort Scott to attend Mercy School of Nursing. In the presence of the Sisters of Mercy, she chose to convert to Catholicism, and later desired to become a Sister of Mercy. She entered the Sisters of Mercy Community on Feb. 1, 1946."
"Working with Sister Trinity totally changed my life," said Gloria Bennett, retired Mercy human resources director, who worked as Sister Trinity's administrative assistant for 18 years. "Of all the people I have encountered in my life, Sister Trinity had the greatest impact.
"In all the years I worked for Sister Trinity, I never saw her angry. She always put people first as exemplified daily with patience, love and dignity for others," Bennett said.
Although the sister displayed great compassion for those under their care, they held high expectations for those working alongside them.
"The sisters were 'no-nonsense,'" said Leah Lewis, retired Mercy education director and former nursing student of Sr. Mary Julita Lienhard. "They demanded perfection from themselves, as well as from Mercy co-workers and student nurses."
Sister Julita entered the Sisters of Mercy Community on June 27, 1937, and professed final vows on Aug. 16, 1943. Sister attended elementary school and Mercy High School in Fort Scott.
She earned a master's degree in administration, bachelor's degree in nursing education and a certificate as a registered nurse.
She ministered in elementary teaching in Humboldt, Kan., and Portageville, Mo., was the obstetrics supervisor at St. Elizabeth's Hospital in Hutchinson, administrator at St. John's School of Nursing in St. Louis and became Mercy School of Nursing director in Fort Scott.
A Fort Scott native, Sister Julita, "felt a huge responsibility to the community and to the hospital to produce excellent nurses. After all, the nurses must possess the finest skills to care for the people of the community she loved so dearly," Lewis added.
The sisters were also known for their stewardship and resourcefulness. Bennett and Lewis recall that the sisters would fill hypodermic needles with butter and inject the Christmas dinner turkeys themselves to save a few dollars versus spend it on the more expensive brand.
"It's difficult to comprehend the foundation that the Sisters have established for health care in our community," Baker said. "Every person who was 'touched' by the presence of a sister was forever changed. And by the sisters' example, the ministry grew and formed into culture of caring for others."
The sisters were also known for their hard work. Sr. Mary Concetta Cardinale, an example of that tenacity, retired in May 2010 at the age of 86.
Sr. Concetta received her diploma in nursing from the Mercy Hospital School of Nursing in Fort Scott in 1945. She entered the Sisters of Mercy in Webster Groves, Mo., in April 1945 where she performed her Novitiate duties.
On March 12, 1946, she received the white veil of a novice, and two years to the day later, professed first vows.
Her ministry began locally when she returned to Fort Scott in March 1948. She worked as a nursing supervisor in obstetrics and the operating room at the Burke Street hospital. She was also an operating room supervisor and clinical instructor from 1959-1963, eventually serving as head nurse until 1967.
Sr. Mary Concetta felt a particular calling to assist older adults with no-cost support programs. Bringing her experience in public health administration to Fort Scott aided in the development of many new programs in Bourbon County.
In 1987, she started a volunteer hospice program that operated through Mercy Hospital Fort Scott. Soon afterward, outreach programs such as the Grief Support Group, Alzheimer's Support Group and Daybreak (a weekly session designed for caregivers of homebound patients to recharge) became commonplace here. She was facilitator for these programs until her retirement.
Sr. Concetta now resides among many other sisters at Catherine's Residence in St. Louis.
"Health care in Southeast Kansas was shaped by the works and the service of the Sisters," Sr. Annrene said. "The basis -- then and now -- was community need. Through the years our work has been supported the church, physicians and business leaders who believe in the Mercy mission."