Sister Helen Rau
Sister Helen Rau, OSM
February 2017 Sometimes I think I was born a Servant of Mary (Servite)! OSM has been woven into my life from birth, as growing up in Detroit the Rau family shared the street with the Sisters as neighbors. My mother loved the Sisters. The Sisters would walk over to borrow a cup of sugar, visit, or just have a glass of lemonade. My dad would take trips to the market to buy bushels of tomatoes etc. for the Sisters: in addition, he would take multiple trips to the train station to pick up or to drop off Sisters. My parents were Claude Rau and Pearl Durand who both grew up in the French Settlement on Highway 21 in Canada. After being married at St. Peter's Church they moved to Detroit where I was born. I was the fifth girl later followed by one brother, Donald. Even though we were Americans we always kept our Canadian heritage. My parents purchased a house in Blake, Ontario so we could visit and know our roots and relatives. My Canadian heritage is cherished and to this day- I love the country, Lake Huron and the wonderful times with family and relatives in Huron County. After being educated by the Servants of Mary at St. John Berchman's and Servite High School in Detroit, I entered the community. My very first flight was to Omaha, Nebraska in 1956! Now I am retired at the very place in which I entered, the Motherhouse of the Community. In the years between then and now I have taught first grade, eighth grade, intermediate grades and high school in Massena, New York, Omaha, Nebraska and in Tucson, Arizona. However, after the first eighteen of those years I became a counselor and spent thirty-seven in high schools. Yes, teenagers have been my life for a long time. Expressing compassion in accepting, caring for and listening to teenagers are the joys of the ministry. I must say I have learned very much from my students and they have given me energy and love. The times that renew me are summer vacations with the family on Lake Huron. My favorite moments are spent playing cards, going for jet ski rides, sail boating and eating good butter tarts etc. Yes, I have experienced grace in so many people and places. Psalm 13:6 expresses my feeling: "The Lord has been good to me and I am glad indeed." |