Sister Laura Magowan has spent a lifetime supporting families through ministry, the young to the old and the in-between.
As her religious order, the Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word, celebrates its 150th anniversary this year, Magowan is nearing her 70th year as a member of the congregation.
Now the pastoral minister at Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in Jefferson City, Magowan has come a long way from her first home in County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland.
She felt pulled toward religious life while she was in high school and joined the Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word in January 1950. That September, she traveled to San Antonio, Texas, where the order is based, for her religious formation and training.
"It was difficult to leave home, to leave family, parents and siblings," she said last week in her parish office. "It was a challenge, but I realized that religious life was my calling, and I had very supportive mentors and companions along the way in my community."
The Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word were founded in 1869 in Texas, first working to establish hospitals to care for the sick. Their mission grew to include education and social ministries, founding schools and orphanages.
"I was trained to be a teacher and served in parochial schools in Illinois, Texas and Missouri," Magowan said.
Her ministry in education spanned teaching and administrative roles, including seven years as an administrator at an adolescent residential treatment facility in Dallas.
"The sisters came (to Immaculate Conception) in 1914 - that was the year the parish opened - and continued teaching in the parochial school until about five years ago," Magowan said.
A special Mass and reception at the church in December will honor the contributions the Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word to Immaculate Conception.
Magowan has served the parishioners of Immaculate Conception for 31 years now, but never as a teacher.
As director of religious education, she helped prepare young people to receive sacraments - Communion, reconciliation and confirmation - and also led adult education programs including the Rite of Christian Initiation, where she prepared and welcomed new Catholics into the church.
"I've had a variety of experiences with the many different people I have worked with. I have worked with young people preparing for Confirmation, I've worked with their parents, I've worked with volunteer men and women of the parish - outstanding, faith-filled people who have taught me so much and been very supportive," she said. "I've learned many things about life and about faith and, I think, the specialness of each person that I meet every day."
Her current role rounds out the various ways she's worked to support families.
"I've always enjoyed teaching, but the role of pastoral minister has been a very special form of service for me," she said. "It's a joy and a blessing at this point in time to serve in ministry to the elderly of the parish, visiting them in homes, in many nursing homes and in the hospital."
Looking back on a long life of service herself, she is often the face of Immaculate Conception for older parishioners who can't make it to church.
"I just visit and pray, sometimes take them Communion, ask them about the family. If they have a cat or a dog, I play with them because I'm an animal lover," she said of her regular home visits. "I let them know that their parish knows them and values them and wants to support them however they can at this time in their lives."
In the parish office last week, she was preparing to attend a funeral in the church next door to show her support for the family.
She's as likely to be seen at the monthly breakfast organized for senior citizens or any other event that gives life to the parish community.
She gets as much joy from reaching out to elderly parishioners as she does seeing young families bring their children to church.
"The faith, energy and enthusiasm of our parish gives me renewed energy. I see the older people who have been with us all along. I see a lot of potential in the young people," Magowan said. "I think that the faith and knowledge that God is always with us - always has been and always will be - is the focus of my life and is visible in this faith community of Immaculate Conception. The faith, caring and generosity of Immaculate Conception parish is a constant source of inspiration for me and hope for the future."