Sister Jean Explained

Honorific Prefix:Sister
Jean Dolores Schmidt
Birth Name:Jean Dolores Schmidt
Birth Date:21 August 1919
Birth Place:San Francisco, California, U.S.
Nationality:American
Religion:Catholic
Residence:Chicago, Illinois
Alma Mater:Mount St. Mary's College (B.A.)
Loyola University of Los Angeles (M.A.)
Honorific Suffix:BVM

Jean Dolores Schmidt, BVM (born August 21, 1919), better known as Sister Jean, is an American religious sister of the Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary and chaplain for the Loyola Ramblers men's basketball team at Loyola University Chicago.[1] [2] [3]

Early life

Jean Dolores Schmidt was born on August 21, 1919, in San Francisco, California, and raised in the Eureka Valley neighborhood.[4] [5] [6] [7] She first considered becoming a nun while she was in third grade.[8] As a student at St. Paul's High School, she played on the girls basketball team. After graduating from high school in 1937, she entered the Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary convent in Iowa. In 1941, by then a sister, she returned to teach in California.[5] Sister Jean completed her B.A. at Mount St. Mary's College (now Mount St. Mary's University in Los Angeles) in 1949 and M.A. at Loyola University of Los Angeles (now Loyola Marymount University) in 1961.[4]

Career

Sister Jean began teaching at St. Bernard School in Glassell Park, California and then in 1946 taught at St. Charles Borromeo School in North Hollywood, California. Several students from her teaching days at St. Charles later entered religious life, including Cardinal Roger Mahony, Fr. Thomas Rausch, S.J. and Sister Mary Milligan, RSHM.[9] Sister Jean moved from California to teach at Mundelein College in Chicago in 1961.[10] During the mid-1960s, she was active in the civil rights movement.[11] She was hired by Loyola in 1991 when Mundelein was merged into Loyola.[8] She has worked as the team chaplain for the Ramblers men's basketball team since 1994.[12] In 2016, she was presented with an honorary doctorate from Loyola.[13] Providing a mix of spiritual and scouting support, Schmidt inspired her own bobblehead doll in 2011 and was honoured with a "Sister Jean Day" on December 1, 2012.[8]

Sister Jean gained overnight publicity beyond the Loyola community after the Ramblers' upset of Miami in the 2018 NCAA tournament. Her fame continued to grow after the team upset Tennessee in the round of 32, sending Loyola to their first Sweet 16 appearance in 33 years.[14] [15] The then-98-year-old nun quickly became a star in the tournament; her bobblehead sold for more than $300 on eBay.[16] Loyola ultimately advanced to the Final Four for the first time since 1963,[17] but they were defeated by Michigan in the semifinal game.

Sister Jean again drew national attention when Loyola appeared in the 2021 tournament. After reaching the round of 32 as an 8-seed, she incorporated a scouting report into her opening prayer for the game against the top-seeded Illinois Fighting Illini, a team she was reluctant to play against because she did not want to root against another team from the same home state. The Ramblers went on to upset the Illini, 71–58. She had initially been barred from appearing at the tournament but was later cleared after she received a COVID-19 vaccine.[18]

Sister Jean turned 100 on August 21, 2019. She maintains an office in the student centre on campus.[5] As of 2020, she was living at The Clare,[19] a senior living residence in downtown Chicago that describes itself as "reinventing the luxury retirement community."[20] [21] She made an appearance at the 2022 tournament after Loyola qualified for the tournament, with USA Today noting she was still in good health.[22] On August 21, 2022, the plaza outside the Loyola CTA station was dedicated to Sister Jean in commemoration of her 103rd birthday.[23]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Sister Jean. Loyola University Chicago. March 28, 2018.
  2. News: Macur. Juliet. Sisters of Sister Jean Embrace Her Loyola Team and Marvel at Her Fame. The New York Times. en. March 22, 2018. March 25, 2018.
  3. News: A Day in the Life of Sister Jean, Media Darling. Arnold. Jeff. The New York Times. March 22, 2018. March 28, 2018.
  4. Web site: Jean Dolores Schmidt, B.V.M. 1960–2006, n.d.. Loyola University Chicago. March 31, 2018.
  5. News: Ryan. Shannon. 'Sister Jean' offers comfort, prayer — and a competitive edge — for Loyola basketball. Chicago Tribune. February 18, 2018. March 25, 2018.
  6. News: Cohen. Jodi S.. Loyola men's basketball chaplain, a 93-year-old nun, is full of team spirit. https://web.archive.org/web/20130306082608/http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2013-03-05/news/ct-met-basketball-nun-20130305_1_basketball-team-gentile-arena-basketball-games. dead. March 6, 2013. Chicago Tribune. March 5, 2013. March 25, 2018.
  7. Web site: Sister Jean's spirit: Made in San Francisco. Ostler. Scott. San Francisco Chronicle. March 30, 2018. March 31, 2018.
  8. News: Breen. Justin. Schmidt A One-Of-A-Kind Sister Act at Loyola. DNAinfo Chicago. December 12, 2012. March 23, 2018. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20180324101654/https://www.dnainfo.com/chicago/20121212/rogers-park/schmidt-one-of-a-kind-sister-act-at-loyola. March 24, 2018.
  9. Web site: 2018-03-30 . Sister Jean's March Madness Angelus News . 2022-10-29 . en-US.
  10. News: Whitehair. Julie. Sister Jean Sets the Record Straight on Mundelein Haunting. Loyola Phoenix. October 26, 2016. March 23, 2018.
  11. News: Crosby. Denise. Loyola's Sister Jean is the face of an endangered profession of religious women. Chicago Tribune. March 20, 2018. March 23, 2018.
  12. News: Lang. Cady. Why This 98-Year-Old Nun Is Already a March Madness MVP. Time. en. March 16, 2018. March 25, 2018.
  13. News: Chicago nun, 96, receives honorary doctorate. WLS-TV. May 14, 2016. March 23, 2018.
  14. News: Dixon. Schuyler. Prayer answered again: Loyola tops Tennessee on late jumper. Associated Press. March 17, 2018. April 1, 2018. en.
  15. Web site: Loyola-Chicago lifted by 98-year-old nun, fan in Sister Jean. Dixon. Schuyler. Associated Press. March 16, 2018. April 1, 2018.
  16. News: Rovell. Darren. Sister Jean 'gave her blessing' for Loyola to license her name, image. ESPN. March 26, 2018. March 27, 2018.
  17. News: Wolken. Dan. Loyola Chicago, team of 'winners' bound for Final Four, turns NCAA tournament fans into believers. USA Today. March 24, 2018. March 27, 2018.
  18. Web site: Sister Jean gave Loyola a scouting report disguised as prayer before upset of Illinois. 2021-03-22. www.msn.com.
  19. Web site: Schultz. Nick. 2020-03-28. Confined to her Apartment, Sister Jean Remains Upbeat During COVID-19 Pandemic. 2021-11-30. Loyola Phoenix. en.
  20. Web site: Senior Independent Living Community in Chicago. 2021-11-30. The Clare. en-US.
  21. Web site: Resident Life at The Clare in Chicago, IL . 2022-09-06 . The Clare . en-US.
  22. Web site: 2022-03-06 . Loyola Chicago coach Drew Valentine was pumped to have Sister Jean back for March Madness . 2022-03-07 . For The Win . en-US.
  23. News: Photos: Sister Jean celebrates her 103rd birthday . . 2022-08-22 . 2022-08-25 .