Whether it is the loving smile on her face, the wave of her hand to come forward in Sacred Heart Chapel, or the invitation to a cup of coffee in Studium, Sister Ann Marie Biermaier displays her gift of hospitality. She learned this spirit from her parents, George and Helen, growing up in Browerville, Minn., with her brothers, Louis, Dennis and Ron, and sister, Karen. This openness to other people served her well in her ministries of teaching and principalship in schools in Minnesota, as chair of the College of Saint Benedict and Saint John’s University education department for 15+ years, as dean of higher education in the Bahamas, as current Catholic co-chair of the Bridgefolk Catholic Mennonite organization, and presently as director of Studium, our scholars’ program at Saint Benedict’s Monastery.
S. Ann Marie’s gift of creating space where all are welcome holds true in what we witness in her awareness and generosity in extending recognition and care of the other. There is also an interior hospitality that she has nurtured over time; this hospitality may not be as evident to those who do not know her well.
S. Ann Marie’s hospitality engages the rugged terrain of disappointment, times when personal hopes and dreams seem out of reach. It engages the awareness of conflicts that can only heal with engagement of the other and forgiveness sought after or extended, as well as the anguish of loss in its myriad forms which take one down the path of loneliness and uncertainty. This rugged terrain holds the question of, “Who am I in this time of my life?” Hospitality to the evolution of self, in all its stages, is holy work. This hospitality has penetrated S. Ann Marie’s heart with compassion, gratitude and freedom to put Christ above all in all ways of being.
Living within community with S. Ann Marie these past 60 years:
We share the delight of a Dairy Queen run.
We walk with her to the holy ground where her dear friend, Sister Theresa Schumacher, rests.
We laugh and cry as stories are shared.
We dream of finding ways to be peace.
We see the very young awaken her heart to love and joy.
We witness to her joy at being called “Babah” by her adopted intercultural friends.
We sit around the tables of inclusion with the marginalized and forgotten.
We participate in the Walk to Defeat ALS through her invitation.
We are encouraged to vote and be aware of the world around us.
We claim with her the mantra: “The love of learning and desire for God.” (Jean Leclercq)
And so much more.
We celebrate you, S. Ann Marie, for your fidelity to the monastic way of life over these 60 years.
Profile written by Eunice Antony, OSB, and Mary Catherine Holicky, OSB