Religion Education Classes for the children will begin
October 2007 from 4:30pm - 6 pm.
Catechism Classes at Our Lady of Snows are held every Wednesday afternoon
at 4:30 pm during the
school year.
A snack is provided
for the children at 4:45 pm. Lavera
(Babe) Bell, Dan Mehringer and Corneila Jim are
instructors to approximately nine children
this year.
We are not punished for our
sins, but by them.
Photo Gallery
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Shipshee Cemetery
In 1907 the Potawatomi Catholics acquired two acres of
ground from Mr. John
Shipshee for a burial ground.
The cemetery is
known as Mt. Calvary Cemetery or the
Shipshee Cemetery.
More than 500
Indians have been buried there and parishioners
still care for the grounds and dig the graves.
Roy Hale oversees
burial plot assignments and cemetery
records.
The cemetery
is located on the Mayetta Potawatomi Reservation
at the corner of “K Rd” and 142nd Rd.
SHIPSHEE
CEMETERY LIST AS OF 11/26/2005
Photo Gallery
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Sacramental Record Listings
Holy Cross Church,
Emmett, Ks (St. Marys, Ks)
St. Dominic, Holton, Ks
Baptisms, Marraiges & Burial
Lists
HOLY CROSS CEMETERY, EMMETT, KANSAS
Holy Cross Baptisms List, Emmett,
Ks 1881-1919
Marriages Holy Cross, Emmett, Ks 1881
- as of Mar 2003; sorted
by Bride A-Z
Marriages
Holy Cross, Emmett, Ks 1881 - as of Mar 2003, sorted
by Groom A-Z
For more Information go to:
Prairie Roots
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History
Early History:
Potawatomi people came to Kansas in 1838 in a forced removal from Indiana
known as the Trail
of Death. Their priest, a French missionary
named Father Benjamin Petit, accompanied
the group on the journey, and this group settled
on the Potawatomi Creek near present day Osawatomi,
Kansas. A year later this group moved
about fifteen miles south to Sugar Creek, a short
distance east of present Centerville in Linn County,
Kansas. Here “Saint Mary’s Mission (also
know as Sugar Creek Mission) was established.
In 1838 Fr. Pierre De Smet, S.J. was assigned to work
among the Indians on the upper Missouri and at Council
Bluffs for two years.
1n 1848 the Government moved the Potawatomi to a new location on the
Kaw River on a 30-square
mile reservation and Saint Mary’s mission
was established. They were joined
by other Potawatomi Bands from the Council Bluffs,
Iowa, area.
Before our Indian mission church was built, the Potawatomi Indians traveled
by team and wagon to Emmett, Ks, and St. Mary’s, Kansas, to attend mass on
some Sundays , Easter and Christmas time. They usually started the
day before, and would spend the night at Indian homes in Emmett, and some
would go to St. Mary’s where the Indians were given free lodging and meals
served at St. Mary’s College.
Building our Church:
. With the coming
of Father Murphy at Emmett, Ks, in 1911,
the Catholic Indian community held services in the
Blandin school house. Father Murphy roused
the Indian community to action, and a collection of
$100 was raised. Learning that a sum of money
was being held in trust with the Catholic Indian
Bureau at Washington, he wrote to the Bureau, and a
sum of $1,000 was forwarded to Father Murphy.
Ground was donated by Mitchell Battese, and the first spade of earth
was turned for the
building of the new church in early June,
1912. The Indians dug the foundation,
and helped in every possible manner.
Mr. De Lay of Emmett contracted to do the carpenter
work, and our people stayed helping until the church
was finished. Various Indian families and strangers
assisted in purchasing the altar and articles necessary
for the church which was officially opened in 1915.
The altar for the church was imported from Italy. A pot-bellied
stove provided heat
for the church, and it was placed near the
altar. The large bell and stained glass
windows were brought from St. Joseph’s Church
in Hoyt, Kansas, when it closed in 1924, and remain
here today. As was common to all
Catholic churches, mass was in Latin, but at Our Lady
of the Snows, worship included Indian hymns and simple
hymns sung in English. . Father
Maurice Guilland of St. Mary’s knew the Potawatomi
language and edited a prayer book in the Potawatomi
language that was printed in Cincinnati in 1868.
Part-time Pastor and Travel:
Although the Catholic Indians now had a church, no pastor was definitely
given charge of it,
but the pastors of Emmett and Holton were
left to do missionary work as they could find
time. In 1918 Father Francis Geinitz
was appointed Pastor of the newly organized parish
at Mayetta, Kansas, and given full charge of the
Potawatomi Indian mission. He was to
celebrate Sunday Mass one Sunday of every month at
St. Mary of the Snow church. Finding it was practically
impossible to travel during the winter months,
he arranged to have Mass on two Sundays of the month
from Easter until Christmas during his sixteen years of
service from 1918 – 1934.
Even now, it’s not always easy to get to Our Lady of the Snows.
The Unpaved roads can
still be difficult to maneuver.
It was even more difficult in earlier times.
Well into the 1950’s, Potawatomi people
walked for many miles to clean the church on Saturdays
or attend mass on Sunday. Jesuits from
St. Mary’s Seminary in St. Mary’s, Kansas, came on
Sundays to celebrate mass and hold catechism classes in the
tiny church basement.
Financial Assistance:
The first church collection was recorded on 1917 and yielded $5.50.
“Snows has never been
a wealthy parish, but the congregation
has always been generous with their funds, and ever
since 1918, the church has contributed to
orphanages, seminaries and Catholic universities.
Jesuits Leave Mission:
The Jesuits left the area in 1965 and the church was closed for 20 years.
The church and hall fell into disrepair with no assigned pastor for sacraments.
Through the will and prayers of the Potawatomi community, their great faith
and trust in Jesus Christ and the Catholic Church; and with the assistance
of the Archdiocesan Ministry to Native Americans; and the work of Father
Bob Hasenkamp (1985 - 1991), the church reopened in 1986.
Sister Therese Klepac Hall:
The original church hall
was completed in 1952 and dedicated by
Bishop Edward J. Hunkler. When the
hall was reopened in 1987, it was dedicated to Sister
Therese Klepac. SCL, who served the church from
the time it reopened to the day she passed away in July
10, 1994. She still holds a very special place in
the hearts of our parishioners who worked with her and
to those who are young enough to only hear the stories of
her untiring vigilance and commitment to God and our community.
The Church hall is the center of social gatherings and Catechism classes
for the parish .
Potlucks after mass are always scheduled.
Celebrations for baptisms, first communions,
confirmations, marriages, reunions,
and other family and parish events are also held here.
The Hall was renovated in 2001 with the assistance
of Tribal funding. Funeral dinners are
also prepared and served in the hall by parishioners.
Present Community:
Our Lady of the Snows and our congregation are a vital part of the spiritual
life of the Potawatomi community. The church members are active in
all aspects of Catholic life and the Catholic community as a whole.
Parish life includes
Catholic Catechism classes, Baptisms,
First Holy Communion and Confirmation.
The parishioners have vigorously supported the canonization of saints
such as “Quah-kah-ka-num-ad”
– “Woman who prays always” whose English
name is St. Philippine Duchesne, a nun of the
Society of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, who taught
Indian children at St. Mary’s Mission at Sugar Creek,
Ks, in 1841 and who was canonized in 1988.
Her canonization was attended in Rome by a representative
contingent of parishioners from Our Lady of
the Snows. Our parishioners continue to support
the canonization of Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha with
a nationally recognized Kateri Circle. In 1999, several
members of our parish made a pilgrimage to the
Holy Land to follow the steps of Our Lord, Jesus Christ,
and then had an audience with Pope John Paul II.
Kansas City, Kansas, Archdiocese Jubilee:
In 2000, Our Lady of the Snows was selected as a pilgrimage site for
this Jubilee Year.
Archbishop James Patrick
Keleher was presider at mass and a crowd
estimated at 300 attended this special celebration
and feast provided by our parish and the Potawatomi
Tribe on November 19, 2000.
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Sister Therese
Klepac
A Sister of
Charity of Leavenworth who served
our parish from August 1987 to July 1994.
She was a
faithful servant of God and a friend
to all.
She was, according to a priest who worked with her, “one of the great pastors
of all time.” Sister Therese Klepac, SCL, died of cancer in the infirmary
at the Sisters of Charity mother house here July 10. She was 52.
Until her death she was
Pastoral Associate at Our Lady of Snows
Parish, Potawatomi Indian Reservation.
Sister Therese, formerly known as Sister Marie Stephen, was born on September
16, 1941, on Strawberry
Hill in Kansas City, Kansas. She
was the daughter of Valentine Stephen Klepac and
Agnes Marie Paulin Klepac Higman.
She was educated at Blessed
Sacrament School, and graduated from Bishop
Ward High School in 1959.
On August 23, 1959, she joined the Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth, and
professed vows of religion on August 24, 1961.
Following completion of her
time at the mother house, Sister Therese began
her work in education.
Between 1962 and 1976 she taught at a number of schools in Colorado, Missouri,
Montana, Illinois,
Wyoming and Kansas.
In 1971 she earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in Education from Saint
Mary College, Leavenworth,
and in 1985 a Master’s Degree
in Religious Studies from Mundelein
College, Chicago.
In 1976 Sister Therese changed ministries. From 1976 to 1980 she
was pastoral minister
at Little Flower Parish, Browning, Montana,
among the Blackfoot Indians. From 1980
to 1981 she was Director of Religious Education
at St. Dennis Parish, Crow Agency, Montana, among
the Crow Indians.
From 1981 to August 1987 she
worked in parish ministry at Annunciation
Parish, Denver.
In 1987 she returned to Kansas to work in the Indian Missions Department
of the Archdiocesan
Office of Rural Life and Human Development.
When Sister Therese arrived, Our Lady of Snows Parish was just getting
reestablished after
having been closed for several years.
From 1987 until last year
she worked with the Potawatomi people and
Our Lady of Snows pastors
to reorganize the spiritual, social and
administrative life of the parish.
“She really cared about the people,” said Father John Stitz, former Director
of Ministry to Native
Americans.
“Her greatest contribution
was she believed in them, and trusted
them.
Even though there is 80 percent
unemployment on the reservation, she
started from scratch and helped them do a lot
for themselves.”
Sister Therese guided and encouraged the parishioners, and helped raise
funds to remodel and
improve the church and parish hall.
She set up a new parish council,
and took several individuals to retreats
and conferences.
She helped bring a kind of
life to the parish that it had not seen for
a long time.
“I’ve seen a lot of priests come and go in my 42 years in this archdiocese,”
said Father Stitz of
her, “and I would rate her as one of the
great pastors of all time.”
The Potawatomis grew to love her, he continued. “First, she stayed,”
he said. Even
our Kansas Volunteers were there for only
one or two years.
She stayed until she died.
She was not short term, and they really
appreciated that.
Two, she had the ability
to help them feel responsible for their own
parish.
And three, she liked them.
She enjoyed being with the people,
and that’s a blessing.”
Sister Therese’s ministry extended beyond those in the Church, according
to Father Ron
Cornish, current pastor of
Our Lady of Snows and St. Dominic Parish,
Holton,
“She had good relations with
all the Indians on the reservation, Catholic
and non-Catholic. She was good to them,
and they were good to her.”
One of the people Sister Therese worked with was Laura Thackery, a Potawatomi
who lives in Topeka.
She will continue Sister
Therese’s work as coordinator.
Sister Therese was a very
caring and loving person,” said Thackery.
“She enjoyed her work with
the Indian people, and liked a lot of the
native spirituality the people had.”
Sister Therese’s style was in striking contrast to the strict nuns many
of the adult Potawatomis
knew growing up in boarding schools.
To her own mind, Sister Therese
was continuing the work of St. Philippine
Duchesne,
the pioneer missionary among
the Potawatomis during the territorial
period.
A funeral Mass was concelebrated July 13, in the Annunciation Chapel.
Burial followed at
Mt. Olivet Cemetery on the convent grounds.
(Reprint in part from The Leaven, July 1994)
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Donation for Parish
Operation
Donations for Our Lady of Snows Parish operational expenses may be mailed
to:
Our Lady of Snows Parish
5971 166th Rd
Mayetta, Ks 66509
The new Garden-Grotto sidewalk area is finished and
benches, flowers, and bird bath are in place.
The cost of funding this project was covered completely
through donations -
our thanks to all parishioners who donated money,
labor, benches, bird bath, and flowers.
Send e-mail to: Our Lady of Snows
