Sister Joanne Marie Otte’s Jubilee Celebration
at Santa Isabel School

It seems fitting at the end of our year of celebrating the 175th anniversary of the founding of our congregation to share a tribute that was given at Sister Joanne Marie Otte’s Jubilee celebration this past May. The words are those of Mrs. Anna Marie Silva, who is the first lay principal of Santa Isabel in Los Angeles.

Enjoy this tribute! It is written not only as a tribute to Joanne but also to all School Sisters of Notre Dame, particularly those who were missioned at Santa Isabel School.

"Good evening. On behalf of our Santa Isabel community and family, we thank you for joining us to honor an extraordinary woman. Usually, she takes care of us and celebrates our accomplishments with such love and pride. We are grateful that tonight, we have the opportunity to tell her how much we love her, and how very proud we are of her.

“Celebrating a 50th anniversary of any kind is a great fete, but 50 years of service to God is definitely not an easy one. Sister Joanne Marie has not only done it with ease and class, but she has made it contagious.

“This is a big year on many levels. I am honored that I was asked to stand before you tonight and share the spirit of the School Sisters of Notre Dame as well. They truly are the reason our school exists. It is a very special year for them because it is their 175th Jubilee year. In 1833, a very special young woman recognized the social problems in society. She was wise enough to recognize that the revival of society depended on the Christian family, with the mother being the first educator. And so their mission began with the education of girls. This was 175 years ago in Europe. And, now here we are today, 2008 in Los Angeles, able to gather because they believed. They still believe that prayer is a continuing response to God’s continuing call to mission.

“I stand before you today as a mother, friend, educator and woman of faith because of these wonderful women sitting here and those who came before them.

“From Sister Laurette Haberberger, I learned it was important to begin and end each day with a smile.

“From Sister Regina Grohman, I learned that even as a second grader, I was a young lady who should give respect and demand it back. Twenty-five years later, when I started teaching here, she told me there was one more bit of advice she would like to give me. It was not to be afraid to open my heart to the kids. She said they were what kept her going.

“From Sister Rita Lestelle, I learned that the world went far beyond these streets. She opened the world to us and reminded us we needed to serve it.

“From Sister Celly Ann Amparano, I learned that it was important to stand up for what you believe in even if you are sometimes standing alone.

“From Sister Maynard Wehner, I learned that even though she was little, I had big shoes to fill when I substituted for her in first grade more than 10 years ago. She taught me it was okay to be messy because there were always going to be angels around like her to help tidy things up in more ways than one.

“From Sister Joanne Marie, I have gained more than I can express. I found myself at a loss for words because her lessons have been so many. So, I borrowed the words Father Wittman gave to Caroline. He said: ‘A good teacher finds wonderful points in children and helps them discover their good points in themselves, so that she can help them grow.’ Sister Joanne Marie, you have helped every one of us in here grow and be better people. Thank you.

"Because it is your mission to go where God calls you, we realize that technically we will not be a SSND school, but if we may, we would like to humbly ask you if we may join you. We wish to transform the world through education and love. So, rather than just say thank you, we would like to join you in your motto of all being one. We honor you by promising to keep the mission and spirit of the School Sisters of Notre Dame here at the School of Santa Isabel."