Sister Mary Ann Krajicek O.C.D. marks 50 years of religious life

Intermountain Catholic

+ Enlarge

Carmelite Sister Mary Ann Krajicek celebrates her golden jubilee of religious life. photo courtesy of the Carmelite monastery

HOLLADAY — On Saturday, May 3, 2008, the Carmelite nuns of Salt Lake City commemorated the 50th anniversary of Carmelite Sister Mary Ann (Althea Marie) Krajicek at a solemn Mass at 9:30 in their chapel. The Mass was celebrated by the Most Reverend John C. Wester, Bishop of the Diocese of Salt Lake City, with priests of the diocese concelebrating. Sr. Mary Ann’s family and friends of the community were also present.

Sr. Mary Ann was the youngest child born into a Catholic family in Scribner, Neb., to Benjamin Krajicek, D.D.S. and Mabel Hrabak Krajicek. She attended the University of Nebraska secretarial courses for several years in order to commence secretarial work with the military at the Command and General Staff College of Leavenworth, Kan. Later, she was transferred to the more specialized Army War College, Carlisle Barracks in Pennsylvania.

In 1957, Althea decided to continue her army secretarial career overseas, and was stationed in Heidelberg, Germany amid generals and military brass. With her very vivacious personality, she made many new friendships which have lasted to the present day. Together they took full advantage of the interesting opportunities Europe could offer a newcomer. Learning to ski was a special joy, and she and friends were frequent visitors at St. Moritz, Switzerland. During her three years in Germany she managed to experience the baths in Lourdes, visit Lisieux, Fatima, and even Rome to see Pope Pius XII. Most sobering was a three-week Mediterranean cruise where they were allowed to spend a day or more in awesome new foreign countries of North Africa and the Middle East.

When Althea realized that her father was dying of cancer, she returned home to the U.S. to be near him. She began new secretarial work at the Mile High Center for Shell Oil Company in Denver, Colo. Earlier in her life when she had been asked if she had ever considered religious life, she answered a priest that one day she would like to go away and talk to God all the time, but right now she was too busy. However, she had never forgotten about it, and when a friend in Denver invited her to come along for the ride as she visited a friend in the Littleton Carmel, Althea thought it would be interesting.

What a surprise for Althea when her friend left her at the parlor grate with the prioress and went home. The prioress innocently offered to be of help and althea opened her heart to her. After that, she was a frequent visitor at the Carmel and eventually asked to enter. Because of those days of flourishing vocations, the prioress told her that they were filled to capacity but recommended that she apply to the more recently opened Carmel in Salt Lake City, where Althea entered within the year.

Although not an actual founding sister, Sr. Mary Ann has certainly shared many of the early vicissitudes of establishing a new carmel in Utah, and has held during the years responsible positions of prioress and novice directress.

As Sr. Mary Ann celebrates her golden jubilee as a nun in the Salt Lake City Carmelite Monastery, we join in begging God to bless Sister for her 50 years of – talking to the Lord about all of us, all over the world – her life of intercessory prayer for us.