Sr. Barbara O'Dea Celebrates 70th Jubilee as a Daughter of Wisdom

Sr. Barbara O'Dea (Sr. Louis Mary of Wisdom) celebrates 70 years of religious life this year. She made her First Profession on February 2, 1953, and her parish at entrance was Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal in Ridgewood, NY. She was born to parents Thomas and Mary Catherine on February 16, 1933, in Brooklyn, NY.

Having served as Superior General of the Congregation, Provincial, and Vocation Minister for the Daughters of Wisdom, US Province, as well as a Teacher, Catechist, and Liturgy Director, Sr. Barbara recently expressed that listening to others and learning from others has been the greatest gift she has received during her many years of religious life. During a recent interview at our Lady of Perpetual Help Convent in Sound Beach, New York, Sr. Barbara reflected on the greatest blessing she has experienced during her many years of religious life. She remarked, "One thing I decided when I was young was that everyone had something to teach me, especially my students." She added, "I learned to listen by listening to people, and I think that's one of the most valuable things I've learned."

Sr. Barbara began her education ministry as a Teacher at Montfort Academy in Virginia from 1955 to 1958, then as a Teacher at St. Mary Gate of Heaven in Ozone Park, NY, from 1958 to 1959, and next as a Teacher at Bishop McDonnell Memorial High School, Brooklyn, New York from 1959 to 1965. Her focus turned to Vocations when in 1965, she was appointed Mistress of Novices for the Daughters of Wisdom Novitiates in Litchfield, CT, and Washington, DC, serving in that role until 1972. From 1972 to 1975, she served as the Coordinator of Liturgy for the Diocese of Richmond, VA, and then moved out to Colorado to serve as the Director of Liturgy for the Diocese of Pueblo, CO, from 1977 to 1986. She moved back to East Moriches in 1986 and spent a year writing and lecturing before becoming Vocation Minister for the Daughters of Wisdom in 1987. She then served as Provincial from 1987 to 1994.

Sr. Barbara emphasized that throughout these years of experience teaching, traveling, writing, and leading others, the most important skill that she has learned, the greatest blessing, "is how to listen deeply, so you hear what others are saying, and what that implies for their relationships and your relationships, and you learn a lot." She added, "It's people, and how they think and process things, and what sparked their interest in the first place. Somebody or some event wakes us up, and then we grow in that direction for a while, maybe for the rest of our lives." She added that she also learned so much from music, as her mother was a pianist and has always loved listening to Classical music. "I developed a taste for Classical music and all of the effects that music has on our personalities and our way of thinking. That was another big blessing for me, and so I feel very grateful."