History of the Adorers in Guatemala
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First Steps Adorers Marcellina Wappelhorst and Johanna Murguia left Wichita, Kansas on Wednesday, October 30, 1968, for Guatemala City to begin a four-months' language and acculturation course preparatory to joining other workers at the mission Micatokla in Santiago Atitlan, Guatemala. The core of the news release was succinct: "The eventual work of the Sisters will be the operation of a clinic and whatever heath care and education services can be organized with it." From that date until February 1975 Adorers from the former Wichita, Kansas, Province worked in Santiago Atitlan under an agreement with the Diocese of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, sponsor of the mission, and in collaboration with Father Stanley Rother in his mission Santiago Atitlan where he served the Mayan Indians. In October, 1970, Sister Charlotte Rohr joined the group for a year. She was followed by Sisters Flora Jentgen and Cathy Sauter in 1974. In 1975 the decision was made by the former Wichita Province to withdraw the sisters "temporarily from the Mission," because of escalating violence in the country. However, the province planned to "subsidize the training of catechists, nurses, economists, or other vocational needs from among the people of Guatemala." (Executive Council decision, Feb 19, 1975). The ASC presence continued with a few Adorers and lay people volunteering their summer and other vacation time to help Father Stan before he was murdered in his rectory on July 28, 1981. In a parallel, but unconnected, effort, from 1970 to1972 Sister Maureen Shay from the former Ruma, Illinois, Province of Adorers joined a Maryknoll nun, a few lay volunteers, and priests of the Belleville, Illinois, diocese to minister to the Guatemalan people in El Rancho in the Department of Progresso, a hot, dusty area which lacked almost all natural resources. In 1971 Sister Maureen was joined for a short time by Sisters Annette Embrich and Barbara Wolff.Giant Steps
Adorers Marcellina Wappelhorst and Johanna Murguia left Wichita, Kansas on Wednesday, October 30, 1968, for Guatemala City to begin a four-months' language and acculturation course preparatory to joining other workers at the mission Micatokla in Santiago Atitlan, Guatemala. The core of the news release was succinct: "The eventual work of the Sisters will be the operation of a clinic and whatever heath care and education services can be organized with it." From that date until February 1975 Adorers from the former Wichita, Kansas, Province worked in Santiago Atitlan under an agreement with the Diocese of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, sponsor of the mission, and in collaboration with Father Stanley Rother in his mission Santiago Atitlan where he served the Mayan Indians. In October, 1970, Sister Charlotte Rohr joined the group for a year. She was followed by Sisters Flora Jentgen and Cathy Sauter in 1974. In 1975 the decision was made by the former Wichita Province to withdraw the sisters "temporarily from the Mission," because of escalating violence in the country. However, the province planned to "subsidize the training of catechists, nurses, economists, or other vocational needs from among the people of Guatemala." (Executive Council decision, Feb 19, 1975). The ASC presence continued with a few Adorers and lay people volunteering their summer and other vacation time to help Father Stan before he was murdered in his rectory on July 28, 1981. In a parallel, but unconnected, effort, from 1970 to1972 Sister Maureen Shay from the former Ruma, Illinois, Province of Adorers joined a Maryknoll nun, a few lay volunteers, and priests of the Belleville, Illinois, diocese to minister to the Guatemalan people in El Rancho in the Department of Progresso, a hot, dusty area which lacked almost all natural resources. In 1971 Sister Maureen was joined for a short time by Sisters Annette Embrich and Barbara Wolff.Giant Steps
From that date until February 1975 Adorers from the former Wichita, Kansas, Province worked in Santiago Atitlan under an agreement with the Diocese of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, sponsor of the mission, and in collaboration with Father Stanley Rother in his mission Santiago Atitlan where he served the Mayan Indians. In October, 1970, Sister Charlotte Rohr joined the group for a year. She was followed by Sisters Flora Jentgen and Cathy Sauter in 1974.
In 1975 the decision was made by the former Wichita Province to withdraw the sisters "temporarily from the Mission," because of escalating violence in the country. However, the province planned to "subsidize the training of catechists, nurses, economists, or other vocational needs from among the people of Guatemala." (Executive Council decision, Feb 19, 1975). The ASC presence continued with a few Adorers and lay people volunteering their summer and other vacation time to help Father Stan before he was murdered in his rectory on July 28, 1981.
In a parallel, but unconnected, effort, from 1970 to1972 Sister Maureen Shay from the former Ruma, Illinois, Province of Adorers joined a Maryknoll nun, a few lay volunteers, and priests of the Belleville, Illinois, diocese to minister to the Guatemalan people in El Rancho in the Department of Progresso, a hot, dusty area which lacked almost all natural resources. In 1971 Sister Maureen was joined for a short time by Sisters Annette Embrich and Barbara Wolff.Giant Steps
Adorers’ envolvement with the people of Guatemala lay dormant until September 14, 1985, when the Sisters made a decision to publicly support and to give shelter to the Central American refugees who where fleeing their war-torn countries and attempting to find safety in the United States. From these refugees themselves came the invitation to consider establishing a presence either in Guatemala or in El Salvador.
In 1988 Adorers Anastasia Rubenacker, Kathleen Maguire and Kris Schrader went to Guatemala and El Salvador in an effort to discern from the realities there the possibilities for establishing such a presence. Priests of the Missionaries of the Precious Blood (CPPS) were already ministering in Guatemala and extended an invitation to the Adorers to become part of their missionary presence.Running Ahead
By September of 1988 Kris Schrader ASC arrived in La Labor Vieja, Guatemala to be part of the collaborative endeavor of pastoral care responding to the needs of the people in the surrounding communities. By the end of that year whe was joined by Sisters Rosalina Gonzalez CPPS and Mrife Hellman CPPS, both Precious Blood Sisters from Dayton, Ohio. The following year Adorer Sister Mary Anthony Matthews joined the three nuns already working in La Labor. In 1991 Adorer Anita Fearday went to Guatemala and became a member of the interfaith justice group Witness for Peace. She lived in Santiago, Atitlan among the indigenous people and ministered there for 16 months before leaving to return to Bolivia to serve the people of God there.
By 1994, Adorer Dani Brought joined the group as did two more Dayton Precious Blood Sisters – Joyce Kahle and Terry Walter. In September, 1995, Adorer Joan Hornick and Dayton Precious Blood Sister Dr. Margo Young became part of the La Labor community. At this writing Margo Young CPPS, Dani Brought ASC, and Kris Schrader ASC remain at La Labor; Kris involved in education at the Maria DeMattias Education Center, Dani and Margo involved in health care at the Sangre de Cristo Health Care Project.
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