A farewell to the last member of the Sisters of the Child Jesus to serve in the Battlefords was held at St. Joseph Calasanctius Church recently, during a visit to the parish from the head of the diocese, Bishop Albert Thévenot of Prince Albert.
Sr. Josephine Ludwig will be relocating to British Columbia. She and Sister Marie Claire Lauzon, who passed away Aug. 27 at the age of 88, were the last two Sisters of the Child Jesus to reside in North Battleford. Both were retired.
Sr. Josephine served 12 years with the St. Joseph's parish, and was a classroom teacher for the four years previous. Sr. Lauzon had been in North Battleford since 1967.
The Sisters of the Child Jesus religious women's order has been present in the community since 1925. In her remarks at the Oct. 30 celebration, Sr. Marianne Flory, Canada's liaison to the international order, said, "While we regret having to leave one of our most cherished places of ministry and friendship, we also know that life will go on very well without us."
Sr. Flory, who served as principal of the Convent of the Child Jesus in North Battleford from 1967 to 1973, said while the sisters may be leaving North Battleford, she was pleased to say that members of the Child Jesus Family will continue to remain among parishioners in the presence of 14 Associates of the Child Jesus.
"While it is not easy for us - as a congregation or as individuals - to say 'goodbye' to a group of people with whom we have lived, served and shared so much for the past 88 years, I am happy that we have this occasion to do so! Our years with you have been blessed in every way," said Sr. Flory.
The farewell took place Oct. 30. Six Sisters of the Child Jesus attended, three of them from the Prince Albert diocese, as well as three Sisters of the Presentation of Mary from the Battlefords.
The order first came to the Battlefords in 1925 with the arrival of Sr. Jean Gabriel, superior, Sr. Lydie, Sr. Louis de Gonzague, Sr. Berchmans and Sr. Dorothy.
Their goal was to teach at Notre Dame Separate School and to establish a noviciate. Three novices arrived with them, Sr. Marie Thérèse, Sr. Victorien and Sr. Yvonne de Jésus.
In 1928, the Convent of the Child Jesus was built as a boarding school for boys and girls up to the age of 12. High school classes were added as the students matured and the first graduation was in 1932.
As enrolment rose, the elementary classes were phased out. Eventually a decision was made to discontinue taking boarders, and in 1962, the boys began attending St. Thomas College.
In 1972, an addition of more classrooms, a library and a gymnasium opened at COCJ.
It continued as a girls' high school until its final year in 1985-86. John Paul II Collegiate, a co-ed Catholic high school, opened in the fall of 1986.
After the school closed, Sisters of the Child Jesus maintained a presence in North Battleford, where they continued to be involved in pastoral ministry.
In her entry in the Encyclopedia of Saskatchewan, Sr. Flory wrote about the origins of the order.
"In 1667, Anne Marie Martel, under the direction of a Sulpician priest, began instructing poor uneducated women in the region of Le Puy, France. In 1896 Bishop Paul Durieu of New Westminster, B.C., requested Sisters of the Child Jesus to come and teach the native children in his territory. Four sisters travelled from France to Canada and began their work at St. Joseph's Mission, near William's Lake, B.C.
"In 1915, the congregation, based then in North Vancouver, agreed to send sisters to Saskatchewan to carry out domestic work for Bishop Pascal and the many priests who lived in the clergy residence in Prince Albert. In the following years, sisters also came to St. Hippolyte, North Battleford, Albertville, Saskatoon and Jackfish Lake. They taught in both public and separate schools, nursed, and did pastoral works in parishes, homes and hospitals."
