Sr. Pauline Schafer, SCC, of the Sisters of Christian Charity died on March 29, 2025, at the Convent of the Holy Spirit in Northfield, Ill.
Pauline Schafer was born on Oct. 16, 1926, in Westphalia, Michigan. She entered our Congregation on Aug. 1, 1941.
On Aug. 21, 1944, Pauline was received into the Novitiate and given the name Sister Lois. Two years later, on Aug. 21, 1946, she pronounced her first vows. (In 1970 she reverted to using her baptismal name.) On Aug. 20, 1952, Sister Lois pronounced her perpetual vows.
Sister Lois began her teaching career at Guardian Angels School in Chaska, Minn. Her ministry took her to Chicago (St. Aloysius and St. Gregory); Westmont, Ill. (Holy Trinity); Minneapolis (St. Elizabeth); Detroit (St. John Evangelist); Clarendon Hills, Ill. (Notre Dame); Chillicothe, Ill. (St. Edward); Westphalia, Mich. (St. Mary); New Ulm, Minn. (St. Mary); and Palatine, Ill.
(St. Theresa). She taught, at various times, grades 1 through 5. In addition to her duties in the classroom, Sister Lois also was local superior at St. Aloysius, St. Edward, St. Mary – New Ulm and St. Mary – Westphalia.
In 1987 Sister Pauline was transferred to St. Vincent Home in St. Louis, Mo. She served as a special-education teacher for a year, then became a tutor. It was also in 1987 that Sister was named Director of the Lay Associate Program (now known as the Companions of Pauline). Sister Pauline would continue as Director of the Companions of Pauline until her retirement in 2019.
In 1988 Sister Pauline became a vocation representative. Her other duties at St. Vincent Home included tutoring, coordinating the activities of the Missouri-area Companions and directing the Prayer Companions of Pauline.
Sister moved to St. Mary Convent in Westphalia in 1998 where she tutored at St. Mary school and continued her work with the Companions of Pauline, this time coordinating the activities of the Michigan-area Companions.
In 2001 Sister Pauline was at Josephinum Convent in Chicago. There she was a tutor in the SCC Literacy Program, in addition to her previously-mentioned duties.
Sister Pauline went to Sacred Heart Convent in Wilmette in 2017. She was among the group of Sisters that moved into the Convent of the Holy Spirit in Northfield, Ill., in June 2024. It was her 80th Jubilee year.
The wake was held on April 9, 2025. The Funeral Mass took place at 10:00 a.m. on Thursday, April 10, 2025, at the Convent of the Holy Spirit in Northfield, Ill. Sister Pauline is buried in Maria Immaculata Cemetery, in Wilmette, Illinois.
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