Written by John Haggerty, April 30, 2004
This piece was written in recognition of the program’s 20th Anniversary year, honoring 20 individuals, including Sr. Mary Ellen Nolan, RSM, who reflected the positive spirit and vibrant history of Amate House during our first 20 years.
Sr. Mary Ellen Nolan, R.S.M.
Sr. Mary Ellen Nolan, RSM, was a woman of passionate conviction who committed her life to the cause of peace, to the education of young people, and to the ministry of health care. A founding board member of Amate House, she brought a reputation as a woman who knew how to get things done. For a board long on vision but short on practical know-how, she was just what Amate House needed.
For two years, Sr. Mary Ellen offered her organizational ability, boundless energy, and numerous “connections” to turn the vision of Amate House into a reality. She was a driving force on the planning committee, insisting that its members make Amate House a priority by committing to regular monthly meetings, and she modeled that commitment by attending each and every meeting herself. She prodded the committee to “dream big,” while always keeping the group focused on the pragmatic questions those dreams created.
Sr. Mary Ellen took the lead in crafting answers to many of those questions. She led the way in recruiting the first Program Director for Amate House and was instrumental not only in selecting Mary Rachubinski as the first Director, but also in persuading Mary of the “great opportunity” inherent in leading a program that, at the time, had no funding, no office, and no Volunteers. She approached her own community, the Sisters of Mercy, to provide “seed money” for Amate House from the Mercy Action Fund. Her effort led to a $25,000 grant (which represented over one-third of the program’s first-year budget), the first of many grants from the Sisters of Mercy to support the mission of Amate House. Later, when Fr. Jack Wall offered Amate House the use of an empty convent at Old St. Pat’s to house the program, Sr. Mary Ellen contacted the Mercy Novitiate, where she knew extra beds and linens were available, and coordinated moving those beds to Old St. Pat’s.
Throughout the summer of 1985, despite waging a losing battle with cancer, Sr. Mary Ellen found the energy to remove clutter, scrub floors, clean bathrooms, and paint walls of that empty convent so the first Amate House would be livable. Even when others could not show up, Sr. Mary Ellen was there, working side by side with Mary Rachubinski to meet the deadline of the Volunteers’ arrival.
In August, when the first group of Volunteers arrived, Sr. Mary Ellen was too sick to welcome them. Her absence loomed large, as many realized that the program never would have come together but for her indomitable will. When the Volunteers and Board gathered for an opening liturgy and barbeque, her spirit was intermingled with the prayers we breathed and the bread we shared.
In late September, two Board Members and good friends of Sr. Mary Ellen went to the Mercy Convent in Aurora to visit her. She was semi-conscious, although her eyes were open, fixed upon the ceiling of her room. Trusting that her spirit was wide awake beneath her physical stillness, Ken Brucks and Sr. Marion Cypser spoke to her about the successful launch of the program, and thanked her for the gift of her last ounces of energy, given to bring Amate House to life. She was quiet and unresponsive, but for a tear that ran down her cheek. That same afternoon — September 27, 1985 — Sr. Mary Ellen Nolan was born to eternal life.
Since 1985, many others have given their ideas, their time, and their resources to support and guide the development of Amate House. Many generous, gracious young men and women have volunteered to live in community with one another and to share the profound experiences of serving the poor. But among all pillars of light upon which the Amate House program has been built, Sr. Mary Ellen Nolan shines most brightly. Her spirit lives on in this dream that she willed into life.
Sister Mary Ellen Nolan died on September 27, 1985, after a long struggle with cancer. In her article, “Gifts are never earned,” written several weeks before her death, she reflects on her experience of the past year.