August 27, 2018

Three Sisters of St. Joseph celebrate anniversary jubilees

REGIONAL
Staff report 

(Left to right) Sisters Virginia Maitland, Shirley Anne Campbell, and Kathleen Livingstone celebrated special anniversaries of their religious lives at a Mass and reception on Aug. 25. (IObserve photo/courtesy of Sisters of St. Joseph)

SPRINGFIELD – A near-capacity crowd filled the Mont Marie Chapel in Holyoke Saturday, Aug. 25 for the jubilee celebration of three Sisters of St. Joseph (SSJs) of Springfield. Sisters Kathleen Livingstone and Virginia Maitland celebrated their golden jubilees, while Sister Shirley Anne Campbell commemorated 40 years of service in religious life, representing a combined total of 140 years of service and ministry.

The sisters gathered with their friends and families for a prayer service and reception at the congregation’s former motherhouse, Mont Marie, in Holyoke.

A quote from the first Book of John, Chapter 1, Verse 19, “From God’s fullness we have all received grace upon grace” was selected by the sisters as the theme for their gathering. During the ceremony, the jubilarians shared blessings, songs, and prayers and thanked the congregation, their families, friends and colleagues for sharing their journey.

“When we looked back on what it has meant to be a Sister of St. Joseph, we were aware of the countless blessings of these years,” Sister Maitland said. “God’s grace has come to each of us, and comes to everyone, and in this time in our country, we want people to think more about God’s presence and God’s blessing to us, and that we are then called to be that grace and goodness in the world in need and everyone we come in contact with.”

Born in Montreal, Canada, Sister Campbell is currently a member of the SSJs’ leadership team. A former case manager at Baystate Noble Hospital in Westfield, she also worked for many years in the mental health field. In 1992 she co-founded Weston Rehabilitation Services at Mont Marie in Holyoke with Sister Eleanor Spring, and worked there for 20 years until it closed in 2012. She earned a bachelor of arts degree in English and psychology from then Worcester State College and a master of arts degree in psychiatric rehabilitation counseling from Springfield College, where she also earned a certificate of advanced graduate studies in psychiatric rehabilitation and substance abuse. She entered the Sisters of St. Joseph of Springfield from St. Mary of the Hills Parish, Morningdale, Mass., in 1979. 

Sister Livingstone, a native of Northfield, is a former junior high teacher at Blessed Sacrament School, Holyoke, and Worcester Central Catholic School. She worked for the YWCA of Central Massachusetts and was an associate director at the Center for Transportation and Environmental Education at Assumption College, Worcester, Mass. She entered the congregation from St. Patrick Parish, Northfield, 1968, and earned a bachelor of arts degree from the College of Our Lady of the Elms, Chicopee, a master of education degree in Natural Sciences from then Worcester State College, and a doctoral degree in curriculum and science education from Boston University. She lives in Worcester, and now works for H&R Block as a tax preparer and instructor. She also ministers at St. Peter Parish in Worcester.

Sister Maitland, originally from Pawtucket, Rhode Island, entered the Sisters of St. Joseph in 1968 from St. Teresa Parish, Pawtucket. She served as pastoral minister at St. Mary Parish, Milford, Mass., and later became director of counseling services at Elms College. She was a psychotherapist at pastoral counseling centers in both Springfield and Worcester, and also has worked as a counselor in Newton, Mass., and as a hospice chaplain in Pawtucket. She earned a bachelor of arts degree from the College of Our Lady of the Elms, Chicopee, and both master of divinity and doctor of ministry degrees from Andover Newton Theological School, Newton Center, Mass. She received an advancement to fellow through the American Association of Pastoral Counselors and a certificate in organizational development and human resource consultation through the Boston University Institute for Psychotherapy. She was a member of the 2011-2017 leadership team. Currently she serves as chaplain at Baystate Medical Center, and lives in Chicopee.