by Sister Mary Zirbes
They leveraged a million from the bank that had red-lined the Black Community for years. The
million would be for loans so that the residents could fi x their homes and their yards to live a bit
more comfortably. They promised the bank to form a committee to insure the repayment of the
loans. They took the leadership of Peace House and shepherded it through to a new building and
a more dependable financial structure. They listened and gave moral support to young adults who
wanted to give up their studies at the University because they couldn’t study and work sufficiently
to pay their bills. Weekly they stood on busy traffic corners with their Peace Signs reminding
travelers that war was not the answer. They met regularly with the LGBTQ community to affirm
them and let them know that they were human beings like the rest of us and that they had human
and civil rights too. With people in the Black Community they lobbied the legislator to get needed
services into that community—a community center, housing for the elderly, a park in their crowded
area of the city, health and wellness services. And the nurse from the group took the challenge of
studying the best methods of working with and comforting children suffering severe pain. The
report was so valued at the University that she was asked to take it to London and Stockholm.
Now, how did all this happen? These were ordinary women who had raised their families and
wanted to be of service to the wider community. They lived in different sections of the city and
experienced different problems. They had learned their strengths and weaknesses raising their
children. They learned practical solutions to real situations. They had learned that if one sees
something is not right and they had the resources and the energy and time to change it, one does
something about it. Individually, they could not have done what they did. But, combining their
knowledge, their resources and their energy with that of many other persons, they knew that they
were bettering life for everyone.
These women met through their work with me in their church communities. They decided to
form a group to help the members do what they wanted to do to better conditions. They would meet
once a month, oftener if their project demanded it. They would come together to listen to the leader
of her project, assess the possibilities, give advice when asked for, promise help when needed and
pray for the desired outcome. Prayer lasted 15 to 30 minutes depending on the situation. It was
a communion of hearts and energies. Following that, they enjoyed a delicious lunch prepared by
the woman of the house in which the meeting occurred. Energy was always high and exchanges
were many. It took two years of working together before they named themselves the Wise Women.
They meet monthly at one another’s home. Now they are back into their routine of caring for their
home and in some cases caring for an elderly husband. These Wise Women have been meeting for
more than 20 years and are still community supporters. Their goal is to make this world a better
place for people to become whole. And these Wise Women, now in their 80s, without focusing
on themselves, have become gems of wholeness as they continue to care for one another and their
households. And they would not miss their monthly meeting, or gathering as they now call it, for a
million.
Sister Mary Zirbes shares this presentation featuring a group of “Wise Women” she has met with
for more than 23 years. Sister Mary met these women while working for the Archdiocese of St. Paul
and Minneapolis, specifically to develop Parish Social Ministry. These women found one another
during regional meetings or at conferences held for many parishes at one time. Sister Mary left her
job with the archdiocese in 1993 to care for her declining mother. The women invited her to be a
resource person, and they’ve been working together since 1995.
