Threshold Fall/Winter 2008

A Listener's Life
by Mary Ann Teegarden Didde
St. Joseph, Mo.

My contact with the Mount began when I was very little. Every summer, my grandmother, Ruth Langan Nass and my mom, Bette Nass Teegarden looked forward to the Mount’s Sunflower Bazaar. My grandmother was a close friend of Sister Geraldine and we loved visiting her, as well as many of my mom’s teachers. We always purchased some of the beautiful handwork the sisters had created and enjoyed the delicious treats.

As a graduate of St. Joseph Cathedral School, Bishop LeBlond High School, and Benedictine College, I am the grateful recipient of an outstanding education. Sister Deborah Peters was instrumental in preparing me for college and life. She taught me that “ora et labora” was a way of life. I worked hard and prayed that she would approve of my attempts! She was persistent in her effort to challenge me, and, more importantly, worked tirelessly to make me believe that I could achieve whatever I wanted to accomplish. Sister Christelle stuck with me, a struggling algebra student, until I was successful, though I’m pretty sure I saw her shudder when she learned I was teaching algebra at Cathedral. During my high school years, the sisters who were teaching at Cathedral were frequent visitors at my parents’ home, which were memorable evenings.

I followed in the footsteps of my grandmother and mother and became a Mountie, with the great fortune to have teachers like Sister Mary Margaret Walsh and Sister Juanita Pavlick, who later became my advisor and a dear friend. I loved to visit the dining room at the Mount, where she often invited her history students to join her for dinner. Sisters Janelle Maes and Laura Haug prepared me well for my future career and an inspired phone call from Sister Frances Rhodes convinced me not to change my major when I lost my nerve as a second semester junior!

As an educator in the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph, I was fortunate to work for Sister Anne Shepard, who introduced us to many of the best teaching practices and latest research-based models available in the field. Once again, I found myself empowered and challenged to grow and change. I became a better teacher because of her vision.

After 35 years of teaching in Catholic schools, I can look back on my own Benedictine education with great appreciation. The dedication and commitment of the Atchison Benedictines has had an immeasurable effect on my life. I had great role models who generously shared their faith with me. I, in turn, share the lessons I learned from my teachers about The Rule (I say “Listen” a lot...), the twin saints, and the spirit of community, with my own students. My classroom at Cathedral School is blessed by the spirits of the many Atchison Benedictines who preceded me there.