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Sister Vitalia would have celebrated her 107^th birthday in early June. Instead, she celebrated her patronal Feast Day by entering into the Heavenly Kingdom on Friday morning, April 22, 2016. Sister Vitalia entered the community in Elmhurst, Pa., in 1930, when the community was only in existence nine years, so she was one of the first vocations to answer the call to the Sisters of St. Basil.

The daughter of the late Stephen and Anna (Belley) Tomcho, Sister Vitalia was born in Walhonding, Ohio. She entered the Sisters of St. Basil from St. Gregory Church in Lakewood, OH on October 27, 1930. She pronounced her First Vows on August 30, 1932 and made her Solemn Perpetual Profession on August 21, 1938 in the presence of Bishop Basil Takach of blessed memory.

In her vocation story which was published a few years ago, Sister Vitalia stated that teaching became her lifelong work. In fact, at the time of her retirement from active ministry, Sister had the distinction of offering the longest active service of any of the Sisters in community. Her teaching ministry spanned 67 years, most of these as a full-time teacher and/or principal. Only the last few years were spent in tutoring on a part time basis. Although Sister liked all the places where she was sent, her favorite time and place was teaching the sciences and math at Mount St. Macrina Academy in the 1950’s. It was a great joy for her when the Alumnae returned to the Mount for their reunions and took the time to visit with her. Among the things she enjoyed were trips to the shore, visiting her late sister, good food, and even cooking it. She truly enjoyed life and the people she met throughout her life.

Sister Vitalia spent the last nine years of her life as a resident at Mount Macrina Manor. When visiting her, she could often be found fingering her rosary beads, but she was always ready for a chat. Over the years, Sister became well-known to many of the caregivers. It was touching to see that during her last hours on earth, quite a few of them stopped by her room for a final farewell.

Sister Vitalia was preceded in death by her parents, her brothers Michael and Stephen, and her sister Mary Hausman. In addition to her Sisters in community, she is survived by her devoted niece Barbara Akins. The Parastas Service will be celebrated on Friday evening, April 29 at 7:00 p.m. The Funeral Divine Liturgy will be offered on Saturday, April 30 at 10:30 a.m. by the Very Reverend Andrew Deskevich, Protosyncellus of the Archeparchy of Pittsburgh, with Rev. Michael Huszti as concelebrant.

June 24-26, 2016

Mount St. Macrina, Uniontown, Pa.

This Catholic retreat for the Jubilee Year of Mercy, themed The Heart & Soul of the Gospel, is for males and females, ages 18-35, both singles and married couples are welcome.

Offering is $100. Registration is due on June 17, 2016. Each participant will receive the book Rediscover Jesus: An Invitation.

To register, follow this link: Young Adult Flyer & Reg Form

In response to Pope Francis’ call for Catholics to seek and experience God’s mercy through a Jubilee Year of Mercy, Archbishop William C. Skurla opened the Holy Door of Mercy at the Shrine of Our Lady of Perpetual Help located in the House of Prayer at Mount St. Macrina in Uniontown, Pa. The door was open on Sat., Mar. 19 at 10 a.m. and will remain open through the conclusion of the Jubilee Year of Mercy on Nov. 20, 2016.

A reception was held immediately following.

The chapel of Mount St. Macrina suffered water damage in November from a rusted water tank in the bathroom on the second floor. The linoleum floor had to be removed and the original floor was sanded and restored. The beams and the murals were cleaned and repaired by a professional restoration company before the pews were returned to the chapel, just a day before the first Lenten retreat program.

Having reached the venerable age of 101 this past November, Sister Martha (Mary) Dzura completed her earthly journey at about 8:30 a.m. on Friday, March 4, 2016. Very peacefully, she fell asleep in the Lord to whom she devoted almost 80 years as a Sister of St. Basil the Great.

The daughter of the late John and Eva (Kranack) Dzura, Sister Martha was born in Lambert, PA. She entered the Sisters of St. Basil from Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary Church in the Greenfield section of Pittsburgh on July 15, 1937. She pronounced her First Vows on September 4, 1939 and made her Solemn Perpetual Profession on August 28, 1945 in the presence of the late Monsignor John Powell.

Over a half century of her religious life was dedicated to teaching in the many parish schools served by the Sisters, also serving as principal at the same time. During the span of her teaching career, Sister Martha was sometimes assigned to a previous school mission, and in this way, often taught three generations of the same family. In speaking at the Liturgy about Sister Martha’s life and ministry, Archbishop William alluded to the verse in Psalm 90 which reads: “Seventy is the sum of our years; or eighty, if we are strong.” Archbishop stated that in visiting the churches throughout the country, he met many who had been taught by the Sisters of St. Basil and are now leaders in their churches or communities. Sister Martha lived well over eighty years, so who can imagine the countless students she influenced who now lead productive lives.

Upon her retirement from the teaching ministry, Sister Martha returned to the monastery in Uniontown, where she helped in the Vestment Department as well as assisting office personnel with answering the phone. Sister Martha’s life of active ministry came to an end in March of 2004, when she took up residence at Mt. Macrina Manor due to declining health. In her personal wishes stating how she wanted to be remembered, Sister Martha made note of her love of teaching, her deep faith and her spirit of trust. She further stated, “I am deeply grateful to the Sisters for their prayers, support, kindness and patience offered to me during my illness.” Surely, Sister would have extended this same gratitude to all those who were her caregivers at Mt. Macrina Manor.

Sister Martha was preceded in death by her parents and her brothers John and Michael. In addition to her Sisters in community, she is survived by her nephews Jack and Michael and their families. The Parastas Service was concelebrated on Sunday, March 6 by Rev. Michael Huszti and Rev. Stephen Wahal. Very Rev. Archpriest John G. Petro was in attendance. The Funeral Divine Liturgy was celebrated on Monday, March 7 by Archbishop William Skurla with Rev. Michael Huszti as concelebrant. Interment followed in the Dormition Section of Mount Macrina Cemetery.

May God grant to his handmaiden, Sister Martha, eternal memory and peaceful repose.

Saturday, March 19, 10:00 a.m. 

Please join us at the Mount St. Macrina House of Prayer as Metropolitan Archbishop William C. Skurla opens the Holy Doors of the Shrine of Our Lady of Perpetual Help during this Jubilee Year of Mercy.

There will be a prayer service and light refreshments following.

Day Pilgrimages may be arranged during the remainder of the year.

Sister Barbara Jean attended the ordination of Deacon Lewis Rabayda to the holy priesthood last weekend at Epiphany of the Lord Church in Annandale Virginia.  It certainly was a joyous occasion and beautifully celebrated by family and parishioners and many clergy, along with Bishop Kurt of the Passaic Eparchy. I have given retreats at the Annandale parish a number of times and am always happy to return to this lively faith community.

Saturday morning began with the Divine Liturgy and ordination, followed by a dinner in the church hall.  Father Lewis and deacons served Vespers at 3:00 p.m. with the seminarians of Sts. Cyril and Methodius Seminary cantoring. Another beautiful moment!

Sunday morning we gave thanks again as Father Lewis served the Divine Liturgy of Thanksgiving with several concelebrants. Father Stephen Galuschick, also recently ordained, gave the homily.

The Pastor, Very Rev. John Basarab, spoke at the luncheon that followed and gave Father Lewis the gift of a complete sick call set, reminding him to get right to all the pastoral work before him.  The parish gave Father Lewis a large stuffed lamb, reminding him to shepherd the flock in the manner of the Good Shepherd.

The parish family was happily excited with this great occasion in their relatively new and beautiful church.   Axios! All promised their prayers……

The Year of Consecrated Life declared by Pope Francis officially ends today, the Feast of the Encounter of the Lord with Simeon and Anna in the Temple.  For many years this has been the special feast day of women and men religious and all consecrated persons.

The diocese of Greensburg, in which Uniontown is geographically located, celebrated the occasion on February 1 with a Vigil Liturgy with Bishop Edward Malesic and Archabbot Douglas R. Nowicki, O.S.B.

Sr. Barbara Jean and Sr. Josifa Simova, a Sister of St. Basil from Slovakia presently staying at Mount St. Macrina, participated in the celebration.  Sr. Josifa carried a candle in the opening procession.  After the dinner that followed, the Sisters met Bishop Malesic and answered his questions about the community.

Some of the Sisters and the Affiliates, and a few others, came together at the Mr. St. Macrina House of Prayer in Uniontown, Pa., on Sunday afternoon, December 13, 2015, for a Christmas Preparation Retreat. The House of Prayer, directed by Sr. Carol Petrasovch with assistance from Sr. Barbara Jean Mihalchick , is just one of the many works of mercy and piety run by the Sisters on their extensive property. Besides the monastery itself and the House of Prayer (which was the original monastery), they have a nursing home and a cemetery, and hostels for pilgrims who come for their annual Labor Day pilgrimage, and well as a gift shop. Shrines dot the landscape, and it seems that little coverts for prayer are everywhere. There was a Live Nativity on the grounds getting underway that day after the retreat.

The Sisters had invited Archimandrite George to speak to the group. He said he came with two main ideas to share, the first being the opening of Matthew’s Gospel, in which four women, all of whom had a whiff of scandal, if not outright sin, about them, and they still became ancestors of Jesus. The point being, God can still do great and wonderful things even with flawed people.

The second point had to do with the Word becoming flesh. Why? He proposed that God wanted a hug. We can wrap our arms around thin air all day long—and God, who is everywhere, would be in that embrace—but we know that human beings much prefer a tangible hug, the actual feel of another person. And so God “translates” the divine spiritual reality into the living language of humanity: the Word becomes flesh, and lives among us; even now, in the Eucharist.

The pilgrims had an opportunity to make Confession, and then concluded their prayers with a moleben in preparation for Christmas. The day was topped off with a lovely supper prepared by Sr. Carol.

Sister Eleanor Mary (former Sr. Vincentia) fell asleep peacefully in the Lord on Tuesday evening, December 8, 2015. As she had attended the Divine Liturgy earlier that day, and although she was having some discomfort, no one expected that this would have been her last day among us.

The daughter of the late John J. and Mary (Petro) Horvath, Sister Eleanor Mary was born in Pottstown, Pa. She entered the Sisters of St. Basil from St. John the Baptist Byzantine Catholic Church in Pottstown, Pa., on June 20, 1948. She pronounced her First Vows on August 15, 1950, and made her Perpetual Profession on January 1, 1956, in the presence of the late Very Rev. George Bonchonsky.

For many of the 67 years of her religious life, Sister Eleanor Mary served in culinary arts for the community in the missions in New York, New Jersey, Indiana, Illinois, and Pennsylvania; at the Byzantine Catholic Seminary, at St. Basil’s Home for Women and at the monastery in Uniontown. Her interest in the culinary arts led her to participate in Galand’s World – A Chef’s Perspective to Cooking, as part of the Continuing Education offered by the Pennsylvania State University for three consecutive years.

Sister Eleanor Mary’s ministry underwent a change in 1986 when she became a familiar and pleasant figure in the Card and Prayer Department at the monastery. She would process the incoming mail and take care of keeping the files in order. Sister was assiduous in filling orders, packaging them, and assuring that they would be mailed in good time. She found great joy in doing this, and her dedication often led her to stay longer than was expected of her.  As an “extracurricular” activity, Sister Eleanor Mary accompanied Sister Dolores Ann to the regular meetings of the Multiple Sclerosis Social Club of Fayette County. She offered her services in sending greeting cards for various occasions to the members, and she was so cheerful in doing this that she was named an honorary member and the “Sunshine Girl” of the club. She continued her participation even while she was at Mount Macrina Manor where the meetings were held for some years.

Sister Eleanor Mary was preceded in death by her parents, her brothers Daniel and John Jr., and her sister Patricia Hassar. In addition to her Sisters in community, she is survived by her nieces, cousins and their families. Relatives and friends will be received at the Monastery Chapel on Friday, December 11 from 3:30 p.m. to the time of the Parastas Service which will be sung at 7:00 p.m. Visitation will continue afterwards until 8:30 p.m. The Funeral Divine Liturgy will be celebrated on Saturday, December 12 at 10:30 a.m. in the Monastery Chapel by Archbishop William Skurla. Interment will follow in the Dormition Section of Mount Macrina Cemetery. Stephen E. Kezmarsky III Funeral Home, Uniontown, is in charge of arrangements.