Sister Agatha Hermann

Sister Agatha Hermann (93) died May 18, 2022, at Villa Saint Vincent in Crookston. She was the fourth child in a family of five. She was born July 1, 1928, on a farm near Georgetown, MN, and was baptized Angela.

Angela was the third person in her family to pursue religious life since two of her sisters entered Mount Saint Benedict in Crookston before she did.

After attending a two-room school in Georgetown, Angela enrolled at Mount Saint Benedict Academy for high school. She graduated in 1946, and on the Feast of the Assumption, August 15, she entered the monastery. Angela received both the Benedictine habit and the name Sister Agatha when she became a novice. Sister Agatha made first profession in 1948 and final profession in 1951.

Shortly after her first profession in 1948, she began her ministry in an elementary classroom, teaching fourth grade. Sister Agatha loved those early years and later enjoyed the challenge of teaching teenagers in junior high at Saint Joseph’s School in Moorhead. She especially had a passion for teaching mathematics and social studies. Sister Agatha taught at Saint Joseph’s, Moorhead; Saint Joseph’s Red Lake Falls; Holy Rosary, Detroit Lakes; Saint Francis, Moorhead; Saint Jude’s, Mahtomedi; and Sacred Heart, East Grand Forks.

Summers included teaching religious education in rural parishes. In addition, Sister Agatha spent several summers with the migrant school in Moorhead. After 53 years of teaching and administration, she retired from the education profession and then worked as a volunteer in Pastoral Care at Villa Saint Vincent.

Her “ora and labora” life also held time for leisure. She and her classmates, Sister Laurian, Sister Mary Jean, and Sister Alexine made a two-week tour of Benedictine women’s and men’s monasteries one summer. They were particularly impressed with Saint Mary’s in Pennsylvania, where Benedictine life for women in the United States began under Mother Benedicta Riepp. The sisters visited Niagara Falls and did other sightseeing, packing a lot into two weeks.

Sister Agatha enjoyed leisurely pursuits such as reading and puzzles, and from her early years, she delighted in being outdoors and gardening. Sister Agatha looked forward to her retirement because it freed her to pray, be present to the sisters, and take part in community life – a fruitful conclusion to a life well-spent.

Sister Agatha was preceded in death by her parents Andrew A. and Delia (Denery) Hermann and her siblings: Andrew L. Hermann, Sister Petronilla Hermann, Sister Olivia Hermann, and Helen (Jack) Lutgens. She is survived by many nieces and nephews and the Sisters of Saint Benedict.

A prayer service celebrating Sister Agatha's life will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Monday, May 23. The Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 2:00 p.m. in Sacred Heart Chapel at Mount Saint Benedict Monastery. The Mass of Christian Burial will be livestreamed by going to her web page at www.stenshoelhouske.com and clicking on the prompt to view.