COURTESY PHOTO

The new leadership team of the Sisters of the Precious Blood pose at the assembly. From left: Sister Mary Florence Seifert, president; Sister Madonna Ratermann, councilor; Sister Edna Hess, councilor; Sister Jeanette Buehler, vice president; Sister Marita Beumer, councilor.

Sisters of the Precious Blood elect leaders

By David Eck

DAYTON DEANERY — A pastoral associate at Ascension Parish in Kettering will serve as the next president of the Sisters of the Precious Blood.

Sister of the Precious Blood Mary Florence Seifert was elected president of the 205-member congregation at the Sisters’ recent assembly. The order held its assembly June 24-30 at the Bergamo Center in Dayton.

Sister Mary Florence succeeds Sister Maryann Bremke, who has served two terms and was not eligible for re-election.

Sister Marita Beumer was elected to the general council, while Sisters Edna Hess and Madonna Ratermann were re-elected to the council. Sister Jeanette Buehler was re-elected vice-president.

The leadership team will be formally installed in August and serve a four-year term. The elections were held at the conclusion of the assembly.

Sister Mary Florence, a native of Fort Recovery, Ohio, has worked at Ascension since 1992. She is a member of the Archdiocesan Consultation Team for the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults, and the National Forum on the Catechumenate.

Sister Mary Florence previously served as the congregation’s president from 1984-91. She has also served as the congregation’s treasurer.

She spent 18 years as a teacher and principal at elementary schools in Ohio and Virginia.

Sister Mary Florence holds a bachelors’ degree in education from the University of Dayton, did coursework at Xavier University in Cincinnati and obtained a master’s degree in education from George Mason University in Fairfax, Va.

More than 200 Sisters attended the assembly, which is held every four years. Decisions at the assembly set the direction for the leadership team, officials said.

"It’s the highest gathering that we have," said Sister of the Precious Blood Dr. Margo Young, a physician who serves at several clinics in Guatemala. "This is where we are energized. It’s a time to reconnect."

Some of the business items covered in the administrative report at the assembly included spirituality and justice, community, vocations, stewardship and strategic planning.

"We had a lot of intense business to discuss, but we had a process that helped us get through it and get through it well," said Sister of the Precious Blood Barbara Ann Hoying, director of Maria Stein Center.

During one afternoon, the Sisters worked in small groups brainstorming about the order’s spirituality and direction. With the help of a facilitator, the Sisters moved from table to table writing down thoughts on large white sheets of paper.

"Respecting all life by being a life-giving presence with a focus on rooting out violence and homelessness," read one entry on a sheet.

"Be good stewards of the earth; be prophets of peace," read another.

Sisters from across the United States and overseas gathered at the assembly.

The Sisters of the Precious Blood serve in seven states and the District of Columbia in the United States. The Sisters also live and work in Chile and Guatemala. The order recently marked 50 years of working in Chile.

The assembly also serves as a social gathering for women who may not see each other very often.

"We do some things that are just fun," said Sister Karen Elliott, a theology professor at Mercy College in Toledo. "All of the social things we do are about relationships."

The assembly reinforces the order’s mission of reconciliation and being life-giving, the Sisters said. The mission will sustain the order.

"Our focus is living out the mission," Sister Karen said. "It’s more mission driven. It’s definitely a renewed energy for the mission when you leave."