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(1939-2026)
Fran was involved in some way in many of the Adrian Dominican ministries. She was constantly reaching out to others – always giving of herself in whatever way she could or was called to. Even with our crowd, she was the first to gather us for a party to celebrate birthdays or just to get together. Fran was a very happy person who lived life and someone you wanted to be with.
In the homily she preached for Sister Fran Lombaer’s memorial Mass, Sister Joella Miller was describing a woman whose ministries had encompassed teaching (including two years at a school in South Africa), administration, tutoring at the prison in Adrian, serving on the Congregation’s Portfolio Advisory Board and as Congregational Archivist, and much more.
Sister Fran was born in Chicago on August 18, 1939, to Francis and Virginia (Seidensticker) Lombaer. Although she was baptized Helen Frances, she was always known simply as Fran. She was the couple’s middle child, following Kathryn and preceding Francis, whom the family called Budd.
The elder Francis was drafted into the Navy during World War II and served in the Pacific for eighteen months before contracting a tropical infection and being medically discharged. In civilian life, he was an electrician for Illinois Bell for forty-seven years. As for Virginia, she worked part-time jobs while Fran was in elementary school and then spent twenty years as a clerk in the Chicago Public School System.
Fran’s introduction to the Adrian Dominican Sisters came at St. Philip Neri School, and the Sisters taught at Aquinas Dominican High School as well. “An eager student, I loved school and thrived on learning,” she wrote in her autobiography. She also participated in many school activities, including, at Aquinas, playing drums and then cello in the orchestra and being part of the sodality (a pious organization devoted to Mary), where she was elected an officer.
Read more about Sister Frances (PDF)
Memorial gifts may be made to Adrian Dominican Sisters, 1257 East Siena Heights Drive, Adrian, MI, 49221. Funeral arrangements are being handled by Anderson-Marry Funeral Services, Adrian.
Sister's Memorial Card (PDF)
Note: To view recordings with closed captioning, they must be viewed on our public video library rather than through the links below.
Recording of Sister Fran's Vigil Service - After clicking the link, download the recording by right-clicking on the video choosing "Save video as." Worship Aid (PDF)
Recording of Sister Fran's Funeral Mass - After clicking the link, download the recording by right-clicking on the video choosing "Save video as." Worship Aid (PDF)
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Childhood experiences are certainly pivotal in helping form how a person sees the world, relates to others, and even views God. Bernadine Ann Ziemba, the future Sister Ann, was just three years old when she lost her mother to tuberculosis, and by all accounts her early life shaped her into an independent, self-reliant woman who knew that God cared for her and loved her.
Bernadine, the younger of Roman and Anna (Turczyn) Ziemba’s two children, was born in Dearborn, Michigan, on May 19, 1939. Her brother, Gerald, was five at the time.
Anna made arrangements before she died to ensure her children would be cared for. Gerald was sent to the St. Francis Home for Boys, a military school in Detroit, and Bernadine was placed at the Sarah Fisher Home in Farmington Hills, Michigan.
Roman, however, wanted to have his children with him. He found a home in one of Detroit’s west-side Polish parishes, SS. Peter and Paul, and as soon as he was settled he went to get his daughter and son. He raised them as a single father for the rest of their childhood, and Sister Ann always remembered him as a hardworking man who loved his children very much, provided for them, and was at home with them when he was not at work.
Gerald began attending the parish school, which was staffed by the Sylvania (Ohio) Franciscans, but Bernadine was too young and so became a “stay at home kid,” as Sister Ann described it in her life story. Their father worked for Chevrolet, and so while he was at work and Gerald was at school, little Bernadine stayed home, with strict orders not to open the door for anybody, and stayed away from the windows so that no one would see her.
When she was old enough to start kindergarten at SS. Peter and Paul, Roman enrolled her in the afternoon session. He taught her to look at the clock at home and know that when the small hand was on the 12 and the big hand was on the 2, she was to close the door tight behind her and make the five-block walk. Gerald would meet her outside after school and they walked home together.
Because SS. Peter and Paul did not have a high school, Gerald went on to St. Alphonsus High School in Dearborn, where the Adrian Dominican Sisters were the teachers, and in due time Bernadine followed suit.
Read more about Sister Ann (PDF)
Recording of Sister Ann's Vigil Service - After clicking the link, download the recording by clicking on the three dots at the bottom right corner of the screen and choosing "Download." Worship Aid (PDF)
Recording of Sister Ann's Funeral Mass - After clicking the link, download the recording by clicking on the three dots at the bottom right corner of the screen and choosing "Download." Worship Aid (PDF)
(1933-2026)
This evening, we pay tribute to a gentle woman with a warm, welcoming smile, with a twinkle in her eye, a woman of deep faith, a woman of vision, a scholar, an avid reader, a woman of many opinions and suggestions to help better our world and world view.
Sister Peggy Coyne, Adrian Crossroads Chapter Prioress, was speaking here of Sister Janice Scholl in her welcoming remarks for Sister Janice’s wake service. “Janice was a risk taker who embraced learning other cultures,” Sister Peggy continued. “Janice worked to transform the church and society, to seek the truth through her ministry of teaching. Most of all, Sister Janice loved her family and her Adrian Dominican Sisters, her cats, and the beauty of nature.”
Janice Elizabeth Scholl was born on September 2, 1933, in Chicago to Robert and Dorothy (Williams) Scholl. Her great-uncle was the “Dr. Scholl” of foot-care fame – “We called him ‘Uncle Doc,’” she said – and a cousin took over the business after him until it was sold.
She was the oldest of nine children, preceding Gail, Patricia, Bob, Dick, Sue, Peter, Diane and Gary. In her July 2018 “A Sister’s Story,” she referred to herself as being in “two families,” because she, Gail, and Patricia were close in age but then the next sibling, Bob, did not arrive until she was twelve years old.
The youngest children either were very young when she entered the convent, or had not even been born yet, so “some of them, they only knew me as ‘the nun,’” she said. And, she added, when she came for a home visit her younger siblings hated having “the nun” come because they had to be on their best behavior and the house had to be immaculate.
Janice was educated by the Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary (the BVM Sisters) at both St. Thomas of Canterbury School and Immaculata High School. As she neared her high school graduation in 1951, she knew she wanted to enter religious life and the BVMs were the only Sisters she knew. When she spoke with her father about her desire, however, he told her not yet, that she should get a job and date some more and they would talk about it again later.
Read more about Sister Janice (PDF)
Recording of Sister Janice's Vigil Service - After clicking the link, download the recording by clicking on the three dots at the bottom right corner of the screen and choosing "Download." Worship Aid (PDF)
Recording of Sister Janice's Funeral Mass - After clicking the link, download the recording by clicking on the three dots at the bottom right corner of the screen and choosing "Download." Worship Aid (PDF)
(1934-2026)
Therese Bayus, the future Sister Mary Vianne, had not even entered the Congregation yet when, the year after graduating from high school, she found herself teaching sixty-eight third graders at St. Clement School in Center Line, Michigan. It was surely good training for her later educational ministries as a Sister.
“I shall never forget those children and dare to say that they were my favorite youngsters,” she wrote in her life story.
Therese was the oldest child of Stephen and Viola (Schutz) Bayus, born on March 25, 1934, in North Branch, Michigan. Twins Paul and Pauline (known as Polly) arrived thirteen months later.
“Mom was kept busy with the three of us,” Sister Vianne wrote. “She was always happy and my earliest recollections were that she was always singing as she went about the many tasks babies require.”
By the time Therese was school age, the family had moved to Center Line, Michigan, where Stephen worked as a tool and die maker. At some point, as evidenced by Therese’s application to enter the Congregation, Viola became an office worker.
Therese attended St. Clement School all the way through her high school years. The school was staffed by the Racine Dominican Sisters, and “I loved them dearly and was at the convent every chance I got.” In fact, after she made her first communion in second grade she often begged her mother to let her leave home and go live at the convent with the Sisters. “I couldn’t understand why that was not possible,” she wrote.
Read more about Sister Mary Vianne (PDF)
Recording of Sister Vianne's Vigil Service - After clicking the link, download the recording by right-clicking on the video choosing "Save video as." Worship Aid (PDF)
Recording of Sister Vianne's Funeral Mass - After clicking the link, download the recording by right-clicking on the video choosing "Save video as." Worship Aid (PDF)
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