in Portland, taking the train for Gervais on October 30.7
While they were still in Portland, their first postulant applied to join the sisters, “who as yet had neither house nor home.” They also received the discouraging news that, while the people in Gervais were eager to receive them, their convent was not finished, although Adelhelm had assured them that everything was in readiness. One important thing was in order, however. On July 16, 1882, His Holiness Pope Leo XII had granted permission to “found a house of regulars of the Order of St. Benedict of the Monastery of Engelberg in Switzerland, at the mission named Sts. Gervase and Protase, as well as the permission to found in the same place a house of nuns of the same Order, who are free for the Catholic education of girls.” A note in the Annals reads “permission to open a novitiate for Benedictine Sisters of Perpetual Adoration,”8 although perpetual adoration is not mentioned in the original document. The petition had been made by Archbishop Charles Seghers at the request of Adelhelm Odermatt. Finding a place in which to open a novitiate was the next challenge facing this group of missionaries.
Nothing daunted, they set out for their new home, marveling at the green fields and fair gardens along the way. They had seen nothing like this in Switzerland at this time of year. It must have been a typical Oregon October, because a torrent of rain greeted them as they arrived at the town of Gervais. The weather was described as a “fit emblem of the graces bestowed on them and upon the parish.”9
Sister Sophie Thibbadeaux, at that time a teenager, described their arrival. From her home across from the depot, she and her younger sister customarily watched the train from Portland as it pulled into the station. On October 30, they were surprised at the crowd that disembarked, and soon learned that it was led by none other than their pastor, Adelhelm Odermatt, a slight, dark-haired priest of thirty-eight years. “He was followed by a procession of reverend fathers, six sisters, 4 young ladies, and men—young and old. Everybody was loaded with baggage of all descriptions. It was pouring rain.”10
Dinner had been prepared at the rectory and was served by Mary Kuschnick, who would be the first American to join the community and make profession as Sister Gervasia. Lodging was still a problem, settled temporarily by accepting the kindly offers of parishioners to take them in by twos and threes. Learning that it would be some months before their convent would be complete, they set out looking for rooms to rent. “Luckily” there was a vacant saloon with two adjoining rooms, which the proprietor, Mrs. Matt, let the sisters have gratis. Being in somewhat dilapidated condition, it took a few days to make the place habitable. One room was to serve as a dormitory, the other as kitchen, refectory, and general living space. The four postulants immediately began cleaning their new abode and were assigned to do the cooking for the group.
What was there to cook, since they had not been able to bring food with them? Mr. Kaminzky, described as a Jewish merchant in the town, came to the rescue, sending some provisions every day. The sisters woke on October 31 to a slight frost, and were surprised and grateful to find a load of wood in front of their newfound, drafty home.11
November 1, the Feast of All Saints, was a day of jubilation at the modest little church of Sts. Gervaise and Protase. According to Sister Sophie, “Our congregation in church thought that heaven had come down to earth. The music and singing were such as they had never heard before.” She mentioned the angelic voices of Medard Fuerst (Father Placidus) and Edmund Snyder (Father Maurus), accompanied on the organ by Father Barnabas. “At the altar was the splendor of a High Mass with a deacon. The whole experience was a rapture.”12
That same day, Sister Bernardine accompanied Sisters Brigitta, Agatha, and Magdalene as they left for their first mission at Grand Ronde. A residential school for Native American children was located there on the reservation. It had been staffed originally, in 1874, by the Sisters of the Holy Names. They decided to withdraw in 1880, since they were required to teach and take care of young men and boys, which was contrary to their constitutions. Benedictine sisters from St. Joseph, Minnesota, took over the work in April of 1881 and stayed only until January of 1882, when Abbot Alexis of St. John’s in Collegeville ordered them home, noting that he would not even allow a dog to live there.13
There was some justification for the abbot’s assessment of the Grand Ronde Mission. The school had, at its peak, thirty-five students, ranging in age from five to twenty years. The buildings were in swampy land, and getting to the barn to milk the cows required heavy boots. Since the government stipend for each child was small, much of the food had to be raised at the school, requiring work for the sisters far beyond classroom teaching.
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