Sister Mary Caroline Jakubowski, SSND

• Professed 1959
• Current ministry: graphic designer
• Previous ministries: educator, administrator, community leader and social services worker

The five-minute drive from my home on Milwaukee's north side to the School Sister of Notre Dame fortress-like motherhouse was, for me, a journey into "the land of promise." There I was transplanted into the rich soil of faith, love and fun (extensions of my parental home), a soil, which held roots that reached around the world and far back into history. From this, then semi-cloistered setting, my life would unfold with grace, opportunity and experiences beyond my dreams.

Through the years, my soul was enriched, personal growth was fostered and countless friendships in community nurtured and supported me. Education was provided to develop my talents and interests. Calls to ministry challenged and stretched me. They took me into classrooms, to a boarding high school, into labor rooms with pregnant teens, and, as a community leader, to East and West Europe, Alaska, Guam and surrounding islands, Japan and several countries in Africa. As religious life evolved, so did mine. More recently, ministry has taken me into foster homes, which I licensed and then placed children, and now, to the establishment of a graphic design business, where I hope to meet the needs of those who can't afford the "big guys."

As I reflect on it all, I delight in God's goodness to me, and in knowing that Mother Theresa's and Mother Caroline's DNA is mine by virtue of our charism. How blessed I am to have sisters and friends all over the world. I stand in awe of all that has been and all that is still to unfold in my life. Truly, I've been in a "land of promise," but, to think, the "Promised Land" still lies ahead.

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