Sister Mary Maureen Blenkush, 98, died on November 17, 2020, at St. Francis Convent, Little Falls, Minn.
Ursula Rose (called Sally) was born on November 12, 1922, in St. Stephen, Minn. She was the eighth of 11 children born to the late Andrew and Rose (Oman) Blenkush. She was born and baptized on that November day. She said, “Baptisms were done on Sundays and her folks didn’t want to take a chance on being snowed in the following Sunday and having a pagan baby in the house for several weeks.”
The Blenkush children played together and had fun together. When their Uncle Barney Kirmeier visited them, he would offer them coins. Sally always took a nickel because it was bigger than the other coins. Sally attended school in St. Stephen where all her classmates were relatives. There were two teachers, one for first through fourth grades, and one for fifth through eighth grades. Both boys and girls played baseball and loved the game. It is no surprise to learn that Sister Maureen was a fan of, and enjoyed watching, the Minnesota Twins.
Sally attended St. Francis High School. She was active in sports, glee club, dramatics, and was on the staff of the Fioretti, the school paper. It was during her high school years that she felt a call to religious life and on January 5, 1940, she entered the postulancy. She was accepted as a Franciscan Sister of Little Falls, Minnesota, on August 12, 1940, and given the name Sister Mary Maureen. She made first profession of vows on August 12, 1942, and final vows on August 12, 1945. She was a Franciscan Sister for 80 years.
Sister Maureen obtained her R.N. at St. Francis School of Nursing, Breckenridge. Later, she received a bachelor of science in nursing education from Marquette University; a bachelor’s degree in pharmacy from Duquesne University, Pittsburgh, Pa.; and a master’s in pharmacy from North Dakota State University, Fargo, N. Dak. President John F. Kennedy was killed while Sister Maureen was studying in Pittsburgh and she went to Washington and attended the visitation at the Capitol.
Sister Maureen ministered as a staff nurse, nursing instructor, supervisor and pharmacist at several Franciscan Sisters facilities and at St. Michael’s Hospital, Milwaukee, and St. Joseph’s Hospital, Crookston. Later, she served as a parish minister in several parishes, as Motherhouse administrator, as manager of the Franciscan Art and Gifts Shop and as coordinator of the convent library. She served in Little Falls, Breckenridge, Crookston, Beardsley, Graceville, Glencoe, Fairfax, Marshall, Sandstone and Onamia, Minn.; Milwaukee and Cudahy, Wis.; and Chicago, Ill. She served on governing boards of health care facilities for 25 years.
In Little Falls, Sister Maureen was very active in promoting and implementing the annual “Relay for Life” program for many years. It is not surprising that, in 2000, the Little Falls Exchange Club awarded Sister Maureen its highest honor, the Golden Deeds Award. While living at Our Lady of Lourdes Convent in Little Falls, she was very active in a prayer group that met on a regular basis.
Sister Maureen treasured the gift of life and believed the appropriate response to this gift was to live it as fully as possible. She was a fun-loving, creative and enthusiastic person, and always had a witty comeback. She loved crossword puzzles (she did them in ink), walking, reading, sewing, playing solitaire and being on—or at least next to—a lake. She said, “I believe the Franciscan way of following Jesus via the gospels gives me freedom to live life most fully.”
Sister Maureen was preceded in death by siblings Florence, August, Mary Alice Sowada, Dorothy Henz, Laurence, Leon, Claude, Josephine Sowada, Theresa Gregory and Philip. Survivors include nieces, nephews and her Franciscan Community.
A private burial service was held November 19, 2020. A Memorial Mass was celebrated November 29, 2021 with family and friends.
