May the Angels Lead Her into Paradise
 

Sister Judine Suter, O.S.B

 Born October 6, 1924
Professed July 11, 1945
Entered Eternal Life
March 20, 2008

Sister Judine (Rita) Suter, O.S.B., 83, died after a short illness on Thursday, March 20, 2008.

Rita Suter was born on October 6, 1924, and raised on a farm near Clara City, MN, the second of Joseph and Sophia (Schaack) Suter’s six children.  Having felt a call to religious life in grade school, she asked to attend a Catholic high school and was enrolled in St. Benedict’s High School and then in St. Benedict’s College, St. Joseph, MN.   She entered the novitiate  at St. Benedict’s Monastery, St. Joseph , MN , in 1944, and received the name of Sister Judine. She professed vows in 1945 and finished college with a degree in History and English. She celebrated her 60^th jubilee in 2005.  She was a founding member of Mount Benedict Monastery, Ogden , UT.

After her college education, Sister Judine obtained a Master’s degree in European History at Marquette University .  She spent 28 years teaching in various missions for her religious community.  One achievement of which she was very proud was her co-founding of the summer community theatre in St. Cloud .  In 1976, Sister Judine volunteered to teach at Judge Memorial High School in Salt Lake City where she taught for ten years.  Feeling a desire to try another ministry in Utah , she obtained a Masters degree in Pastoral Ministry at Seattle University , becoming a certified addictions counselor.  Sister Judine used this education in her work at Western Institute of Neuropsychiatry and the VA Hospital, both in Salt Lake City .  When an opening occurred at St. Benedict’s Hospital in Ogden (now Ogden Regional Medical Center ), in the ACT treatment center for alcoholic and drug addicts, she took the position and worked there for 6 ½ years before retiring in 1995.

Retirement did not mean Sister Judine slowed down.  Her volunteer activities in the civic community, as well as sharing her many gifts with her religious community, kept her fully occupied.  Among those volunteer activities was as active RCIA team member as well as Eucharistic minister at St. Joseph’s Parish, Ogden; hearing fifth steps for ACT patients at Ogden Regional Medical Center; serving as secretary of the Ogden Rescue Mission Clinic Board as well as volunteering as receptionist at the Rescue Mission Clinic; and being a spiritual director for a number of individuals. 

Sister Judine was thankful for her Benedictine vocation and for the blessings and joys of community life.  She was grateful for the opportunities she had to touch the lives of so many people in her varied ministries.  At the time of her death, she was still actively involved in hearing fifth steps for ACT patients as well as being very active in serving her religious community in a variety of ways. 

In addition to the sisters of her religious community, Sister Judine is survived by two sisters and their husbands, Mr. & Mrs. Milton (Mary) Prekker and Mr. & Mrs. Henry (Roseann) Sechler; two sisters-in-law Kay Suter and Lois Ann Suter; and one brother-in-law Jim Burns, as well as many nieces and nephews.  She was preceded in death by her parents; one sister Leona, and two brothers, Leo and Cecil. 

A viewing was held at the monastery from 4 – 7 p.m. with a vigil service at 7 p.m. on Monday, March 24, 2008.  The funeral Mass was held at St. Joseph ’s Parish in Ogden on Tuesday, March 25, 2008 at 11 a.m., with a viewing 45 minutes prior.  Interment was in the cemetery at Mount Benedict Monastery, Ogden , UT.

Among the things on Sister Judine’s office desk was a quote from George Bernard Shaw:  “Life is no brief candle to me.  It is a sort of splendid torch which I have got hold of for the moment and I want to make it burn as brightly as possible before handing it on to future generations.  This sums up exactly what Sister Judine believed and professed her entire life.  We rejoice that she was able to let her candle burn brightly and that she is now enjoying happiness with God in heaven.

Sister Danile Knight, Prioress, and Community