Sister Helene Conway

Sister Helene Conway was a true Brooklyn girl. She grew up in Holy Cross parish and lived only eight blocks from Ebbets Field. She and her friends attended every Saturday home game of the Brooklyn Dodgers for the admission price of fifty cents!

Devout Catholics, Helene’s parents were friendly with the Sisters. In the second grade at Holy Cross School, Helene met Sister Mary Albert whom she loved. At home she would dress up and play nun. In high school at Bishop McDonnell, she met other religious communities, but without knowing anything about charisms, she was drawn to the spirit and joyfulness of the Sisters of St. Joseph. In 1958 she graduated and joined them under the sponsorship of Sister Mary Albert.

Helene’s first assignment was to teach at Ascension School in Elmhurst. There she met Sister Rose Gertrude who had a profound influence on her. Sister Rose was the Superior of the convent and her example of compassion, sensitivity and care for others inspired young Helene. From her she learned the importance of outreach and the awareness of “love of neighbor without distinction.”

From Ascension Helene was sent back to Brooklyn to teach at St. Cecilia School. It was a new community with vibrant Sisters and Helene loved it there. To her dismay in 1967 she was “changed” to St. Francis Xavier parish. S. Helene admits she shed some tears at having to leave St. Cecilia’s. What she didn’t know then was that this was the most significant change of her life and she would spend the next half century plus among the parish community there and those “tears would turn to joy”

S, Helene taught in St Francis Xavier school for eight years, but, in 1975 she completed a Master’s degree in Religious Studies at Manhattan College. She spoke with the pastor about the possibility of going full time into parish ministry. He was enthusiastic and for the next fifty years she gave herself in ministry to St. Francis parish.

During those years eight different pastors came and went, but S. Helene was the rock of stability in the parish. Working with each of them over the years, she was able to create and implement many programs. S. Helene served as Pastoral Associate, Director of Religious Education, Director of RCIA and Chair of the Liturgy Committee. She founded a Bereavement Support Group and helped to organize the Catholic Young Adults group. Seeing the need, she organized the Children’s Liturgy of the Word group to meet every Sunday at 9:30 Mass. She also organized and facilitated the Prayer Shawl Group to comfort persons who were ill. Elizabeth Ministries, a woman-to-woman partnership of prayer for women who were pregnant or facing health issues was another focus. A parish book club which has grown to more than 500 volumes was her idea as a way to provide spiritual reading for everyone. At the same time, her relationships with the people grew and the parish community flourished.

  It was her life work and as it went on over the years, S. Helene influenced many lives in her beloved Park Slope community and they influenced her. She says her favorite ministry was with RCIA where she met so many adults with deep spiritual lives and a desire to know God.

With a smile S. Helene says she began to think it was time to retire when a little girl asked her if she would take a picture with her when she made her confirmation. “Of course,”, she replied. The girl was happy and said,” That’s good because my grandmother and mother have one with you.”

In her farewell remarks to the parish community S. Helene said” In each of you and in those with whom I have shared ministry here I have seen the face of God…You have been such a blessing in my life and it has been my privilege to minister to and with you.”

‘Eyes open, ears attentive, spirit alert. . .sleeves rolled up for ministry,
without excluding the more humble, the less pleasing,
the less noticeable;
Finally, in her face the reflection of a virtue proper to our Congregation,
– continual joy of spirit..
This is the quiet inner glow of the Sister whose life
in the service of Jesus Christ has been successful.”

– Marius Nepper, S.J.