In 2023, six Clinton Franciscan Sisters will celebrate their Jubilee, the anniversary of entrance into religious life. Sisters Jane McCarthy, Ann Martinek, Eileen Golby, Jeanne d’Arc Untz, Ruth E. Westmoreland, and Kathleen Sadler have a combined 345 years of service to God’s people.
Additionally, Barbara Brinkman of Indianapolis, IN; Patricia Griffin and Agnes Johnson of Lexington, KY; Priscilla Sprague of Albany, NY; and Beth Van Conia of Belleville, IL, will celebrate 25 years as Clinton Franciscan Associates.
Jubilee Mass will be held Saturday, July 29, at 10:30 a.m. at Jesus Christ, Prince of Peace Catholic Church in Clinton with Father Michael Schaab of the Diocese of Peoria presiding. The public is welcome to attend. A private luncheon will follow.
70 years
McCarthy has ministered as a teacher and administrator at schools in Iowa, Illinois, California, Nebraska, and Missouri. While at Mount St. Clare College in Clinton, she also served as Academic Dean and Financial Aid Officer.
She was a Pastoral Associate at parishes in Chicago, IL; Maywood, IL; Washington, IA; and Clinton. She also led Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults, taught religious education, and coordinated Hispanic ministry.
She served on the General Council of the Sisters of St. Francis for eight years and was General Secretary and Canonical Treasurer for four years.
McCarthy retired from full-time ministry in 2014. She continued as an advocate for immigrants and worked tirelessly in support of immigration reform.
Presently, she resides at The Alverno in Clinton and enjoys birdwatching.
She was a teacher at schools in Missouri and Illinois, and a principal at schools in Missouri, Illinois, and Iowa. She was principal for 15 years at St. Justin the Martyr School in Missouri. During that time, she partnered with the St. Louis Special Education School and a program was initiated that integrated St. Justin and special education students. Martinek also ministered for 15 years as Director of Religious Education and Pastoral Associate while at St. John Bosco Parish in St. Louis, MO.
Martinek was a member of the General Council of the Sisters of St. Francis for four years. She retired from full-time ministry in 2014.
After moving to The Canticle in Clinton, she served the congregation as Associate Partnership Coordinator from 2015 to 2017 and worked part-time as the Assistant Finance Director from 2015 to 2022.
Martinek remains a resident of The Canticle, where she volunteers on the advisory committee.
60 Years
Golby has ministered as both teacher and principal at schools in Iowa, Illinois, and California. She served for five years as Pastoral Associate in the Newman Center at Eastern Kentucky University, Richmond, KY, and for sixteen years as Pastoral Associate at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish, Lexington, KY.
She was a member of the General Council of the Sisters of St. Francis from 1996 to 2004, serving as Vice President during her second term. In 2012, she was elected to a four-year term as Councilor on the congregational leadership team, stepping forward as Vice President from 2013 to 2016.
Golby is a resident of The Canticle in Clinton, where she is a cantor and serves on the liturgy and social committees. She also volunteers her time serving on the Bridgeview Community Mental Health Board, Regency Retirement Residence Board, and with the Clinton Peace Coalition encompassing Living Peace 365.
Untz served as a teacher in schools in California, Illinois, and Iowa. From 1974 to 1988, she served in the Mount St. Clare Speech and Hearing Center at Mount St. Clare College, Clinton, as well as in the Thomson Public School, Thomson, IL. She was also contracted to work at Mercy Hospital, Eagle Point Nursing Home, and the VNA visiting the homebound.
Beginning in 1988, her ministry was confined to the Mount St. Clare Speech and Hearing Center, becoming its Associate Director in 1991. She continued her work as a speech pathologist until the center closed in the spring of 2012.
Presently, Untz resides at The Canticle in Clinton, where she serves on the social committee and sacristan team. She is active in prayer ministry, leading three prayer groups with people who seek the opportunity to pray regularly with her. Additionally, she serves on the local anti-human trafficking committee and volunteers at Prince of Peace Parish. She has an extensive communication ministry writing thank you notes to benefactors, weekly notes for Share Our Sandwiches recipients, and a weekly letter to a prisoner for over 25 years.
Westmoreland ministered as a teacher at schools in Iowa and California. She served as Academic Dean and Vice President at Mount St. Clare College, Clinton, before responding to an inner call to use her talents as an advocate for troubled children.
In 1983, she began development work for Boysville of Michigan and later transferred to Ennis Center for Children, a companion organization in Pontiac, MI. She worked for Catholic Charities in the Diocese of Joliet, IL, including several years as coordinator of childcare at Daybreak Center and then as supervisor of Hope House Shelter in Villa Park, IL.
Westmoreland served as the director of Café on Vine in Davenport, IA, from 2008 to 2016, and continued volunteer ministry on a part-time basis for several years following. She also volunteered as a court-appointed special advocate for foster children in Clinton.
She was a member of the General Council of the Sisters of St. Francis from 2012 to 2016. Answering the call to congregational leadership, Westmoreland was elected Councilor in 2021 and is currently serving a four-year term.
She resides at The Canticle in Clinton, where she serves on the advisory committee. She also serves on the congregation’s Laudato Si' committee and on the board of directors for Iowa Interfaith Power and Light, the Diocesan St. Vincent Home Corporation, and Diocesan Catholic Campaign for Human Development/Catholic Relief Services.
25 Years
Sadler’s early ministry centered on the physical and cognitive well-being of persons afflicted with Alzheimer’s disease. She served as activity director in the dementia units of several nursing care facilities, including Winchester House of Lake County, Libertyville, IL; Washington and Jane Smith Community, Chicago, IL; Emeritus at Urbandale, Urbandale, IA; and The Alverno, Clinton.
Since 2016, she has been offering spiritual direction and spiritual-themed programs at nursing homes and senior living facilities. She also leads one-day and three-day retreats at retreat centers in Iowa and Illinois.
Sadler resides at The Canticle in Clinton, where she serves on the advisory and liturgy committees and is a sacristan, cantor, and emergency responder. Additionally, she serves on the congregation’s anti-death penalty and sharing fund committees.