Who Are These Handmaids?

The foundation of a Religious Congregation in the history of the Roman Catholic Church has always been in response to God's call, calling attention to a need of his people, economic or religious. What, then, was the need that led to the foundation of the Franciscan Handmaids of Mary?

To answer this question let us recall the historical picture of America, particularly Savannah, Georgia, in the first part of the twentieth century. America was in a period of great social, economic, and political change. It was during this period that reforms were sought regarding child labor, fair wages for women, workmen's compensation and other improvements to achieve social and political justice.

This period was ironically called the Progressive Era because it was during this period that the caste system between races in the South became solidified. African-Americans had gradually lost their civil rights. Discrimination by law was enforced on street cars, in restaurants, hotels and other public places. In Savannah, Georgia, as in othe places in the South, the Klu Klux Klan was active in enforcing the strict ettiquette that regulated race relations.

In 1915, the Georgia State Legislature proposed a Bill that would outlaw the instruction of Black children by White teachers. This proposed bill alarmed everyone who was interested in the education of Black children, particularly Fr. Ignatius Lissner, SMA, a member of the Society of African Missions. Fr. Lissner had established three mission schools in Savannah, Georgia where the children were being taught by the Franciscan Sisters of the Immaculate Conception. If this Bill had passed, who would have taught the children? This question plagued Fr. Lissner as he tried desperately to obtain the services of the Oblate Sisters of Providence and the Holy Family Sistere, two African-American Congregations already established in the South. Being busy with their own endeavors, these Sisters had no one to spare to work in Georgia.

Having spent many years in the African Missions, Father Lissner was already convinced of the need and value of native vocations. Now was the time to act on this conviction. He therefore drew up a Constitution and petitioned Bishop Keily of Savannah, Georgia, for permission to start a new Religious Congregation . The Bishop replied, "Yes, Colored Sisters for colored people!" Father Lissner's next task was to find the right person to be the Foundress. Through a Suplician priest named Fr. Fenelon, Divine Providence arranged a meeting with Miss Elizabeth Barbara Williams of Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Miss Williams was a devout Catholic who had already experienced religious life in a Franciscan Congregation which had been disbanded and, later, as a novice with the Oblate Sisters of Providence. "Lord, what would you have me do?" was her daily prayer. The answer came through Fr. Lissner. Here was her opportunity to join in the founding of a new Religious Congregation, the Handmaids of the Most Pure Heart of Mary. This title was chosen with the idea that members would "serve one another and those committed to their care with the same care, diligience , zeal and love as our Blessed Lady served her Divine Son." Elizabeth Barbara Williams received the habit on October 15, 1916, she took the name of Mother Mary Theodore.

It is an understatement to say that the early days of the Congregation were difficult. Extreme poverty, racial and religious discrimination, and the scarcity of vocations were major problems facing the small group of sisters. In addition to this, the proposed Bill to outlaw the teaching of Black children by White teachers did not pass. The Franciscan Sisters of the Immaculate Conception continued to teach in Father Lissner's schools with the exception of St. Anthony School where the Handmaids taught. The meager earnings received from teaching were insufficient to supply their needs. In order to survive, the Sisters conducted a laundry even though this was not quite the type of work envisioned by Father Lissner and Mother Theodore for their Handmaids.

A new opportunity presented itself in the form of a request. While on a business trip to New York, Father Lissner was asked for the services of the Handmaids to conduct a nursery being planned for "Negro children in Harlem." This request came from the late Cardinal Hayes, who also invited the entire Congregation to move to New York. As Mother Theodore heard of this request, she prayed that prayer which she prayed so often, "Lord, what would you have me do?" To leave Savannah would be defeating the purpose for which the Congregation was founded. To remain in Savannah woule mean extinction. She chose survival and, with a heavy heart, the small Congregation moved to New York only seven years after its foundation. The Handmaids took with them their greatest assets, zeal, joy and the warmth of their love. These assets were in great demand for many of the people of Harlem, after migrating from the South seeking a better life, found only misery and depression. It was to these suffering people that the Handmaids of Mary came to minister.

How happy the Sisters were when the new St. Benedict Day Nursery opened in 1923! But they were not half as happy as the parents and other residents of Harlem. St. Benedict Day Nursery was the first Catholic Day Nursery in Harlem and it was run by Black Sisters! The program at that time was primarily custodial The children were cared for, fed, protected, played with and, most of all, loved. Most of the children came from extremely poor families who could not even afford the thirty cents per day fee Realizing the importance of the parental role in the care of the children, our Sisters took much time informally teaching the parents how to care for their children.

As time passed, the Sisters, responding to the needs of the children and using insights derived from experience and education, shifted the Nursery program from a custodial one to an educational one. The Franciscan Handmaids of Mary were pioneers in the field of Early Childhood Education as they labored to develop the whole child, spiritually, physically, intellectually, emotionally and socially.

In 1926, the Handmaids accepted an invitation to staff St. Benedict the Moor School in midtown Manhattan The assignment only lasted ten years due to the shift of the Black population uptown to the Harlem area When the school closed the Sisters were able to concentrate their efforts in the Harlem area.

Life in New York was not easy for the Sisters. There was much prejudice in New York also. Some people thought it was impossible for a Black person to be a religious. To help pay the bills, the sisters did laundry work after teaching all day. Food was begged daily to feed both the poor and the Sisters themselves Mother Theodore firmly believed Christ's words, "Whatsoever you do to the least of my brethren, that you do unto me," therefore she personally fed long lines of people who came to the Convent for food. It was her untiring zeal to feed the poor which caused her to succumb to pneumonia and die. Thus, the Handmaids lost their beloved Foundress just fifteen years after their foundation.

Before her death, Mother Theodore saw to it that her Handmaids were walking on firm ground. Her life exemplified Franciscan joy and concern for God's poor To keep the spirit alive, she had the congregation incorporated into the Franciscan family as a Third Order Regular member in 1929. She exhorted her sisters to always live among their people. Their Motherhouse in Harlem is one of the few Motherhouses in the heart of the inner city.

Mother Theodore was succeeded by Mother Mary Charles as Superior General Realizing that the Congregation was founded to teach, and that education was one of the greatest needs of their people, Mother Charles concentrated her efforts on improving the educational status of her Sisters so that they could become more effective educators.

During the 1930's, St. Mary's Primary School was established at the Motherhouse to accomodate the graduates of St. Benedict Day Nursery. Their parents insisted that the Handmaids continue to teach their children on the elementary school level. When the convent school became too small to accomodate its many applicants, classroom space was offered in St. Aloysius Rectory. Thus was formed the basis for St. Aloysius School Through the generosity of Cardinal Spellman and the parisioners, the new St. Aloysius School was built. You can imagine the joy of the people in Harlem when the school was dedicated on May 25, 1941. Mother Miriam Cecilia assumed the position of Principal It was the first time that a Catholic Parish School in Harlem was staffed by Black Sisters and led by a Black Principal St. Aloysius remained unique in this regard for more that twenty-five years.

In responding to the needs of the children, the Handmaids did not stop at teaching in the classroom They realized that the importance of wholesome extra-curricular activities as part of the educative process. They organized a band, trained Girl Scouts and set up an after-school care program. They even established a Residence for girls, particularly for those girls whose mothers had "sleeping-in" jobs. As the need changed, the Residence was used to accomodate working girls.

The Congregation grew steadily during the 1940's. Under the able supervision of Mother Mary Dorothy, a new Motherhouse was built as well as a new Novitiate. It was during the next decade that geographic expansion took place "Lord, what would you have me to do?" The prayer of Mother Theodore must have been re-echoed many times by Mother Mary Agnes Eugenia as she tried to decide whether or not to send the Sisters to missions in the South. Though the needs Harlem were great, so too, were the needs in the South. Relying on Divine Providence, the decision was made to join the Graymoor Franciscan Fathers in their missionary endeavors in High Point, North Carolina. The next two years saw the establishment of two more missions, one in Georgetown, South Carolina with the Society of African Mission Fathers, and the other with the Josephite Fathers in Wilmington, North Carolina. In these missions, as in Harlem, the Sisters zealously became involved in teaching as well as in the total life of the parish.

Mission activity in the South did not diminish the activity of the Handmaids in Harlem. In fact, expansion took place as the Sisters became more involved in working with the aged From the beginning of their foundation, the Handmaids visited the sick and the aged, and preparing them for the Sacraments. In 1955, the Sisters began the Senior Citizens Club at Kennedy Center. This gave them an opportunity to meet not only the spiritual needs, but also the physical and psycho-social needs of the Senior Citizens.