Sister Margaret Thueringer

Sister Margaret Thueringer, OSB, 86, died peacefully at Villa Saint Vincent in Crookston, September 18, 2014. Margaret was born in Britton, SD, on June 17, 1928. She was the second oldest of John and Annie Thueringer's four children. Her father was a farmer and the family lived in various places: Britton, SD, Rutland, ND, and finally Beaulieu, MN, located east of Mahnomen. The desire to become a sister occurred to Margaret before she was of school-age. She attributed her vocation to the Franciscan Sisters in Hankinson, ND, having become acquainted with them when her brother was a boarder in their academy as a first-grader. Sister Margaret thought, however that her vocation to be a sister actually came from her "dear, devoted, religious parents." After the family moved to Beaulieu, she attended Rosedale country school for seven years. Sister Margaret related the story of being very shy, but her brother (two years older) had bragged that she could tap-dance. She recalled jumping around and demonstrating what she called tap-dancing. With the intention of becoming a sister, She attended Mount Saint Benedict Academy as an eighth-grader and through high school. Sister Margaret wrote, "I think my father was the proudest man on earth to have a daughter who was going to be a sister!" Margaret entered the Mount Saint Benedict community on January 6, 1945 and was invested with the Benedictine habit as a novice on July 11, 1946. At this time she received the name Sister Marguerita (Later she reverted back to her baptismal name of Margaret). She made first monastic profession on July 16, 1946 and her final profession in 1949. Sister Margaret received a Bachelor of Science degree in education from Viterbo College in LaCrosse, WI. Her first teaching assignment was to Saint Joseph's School, Red Lake Falls as a teacher of the primary grade children. She taught in East Grand Forks, Barnesville, Moorhead, Bemidji, Mahtomedi and Benson in Minnesota, Asherton, TX and in Bogotà, Colombia. In Bogotà she taught in an all-boys school which graduated many of the country's most important political leaders including a president of Colombia. She expressed her convictions about teaching when she wrote "I feel I can help others, especially the little ones, in knowing and loving Jesus better through my teaching." Outside the classroom, she felt most privileged when she was chosen to be an Extraordinary Minister of Communion. She thought it was her greatest honor to bring Christ to others in the Eucharist. Sister Margaret retired from teaching in 1990 and returned to the Mount. She assisted in a variety of ways, chiefly in the garden and cannery. She particularly enjoyed picking chokecherries and ground cherries used to make jellies, and she accompanied others on outings to pick wild blueberries. Sister Margaret made many items for the Mount gift shop: baby booties, caps, scarves and mitten sets, afghans and slipper socks. She grew Job's tears plants and picked the seeds which became beads for more than 500 rosaries. She also made cord rosaries which were distributed to prisoners in the Northwest Correctional Center. She faithfully assisted in the development office by making daily recordings of donations, and would remember each donor in her daily prayer. Sister Margaret suffered a stroke in April, 2013. As a result she became a resident of Villa Saint Vincent. Her ministry became one of prayer and suffering. To the very end, Sister Margaret maintained a sense of humor and a positive attitude. Sister Margaret is preceded in death by her parents and siblings. She is survived by the Sisters of Saint Benedict of Crookston and many nieces and nephews. Reception of Sister Margaret's body will be at 4:30 p.m. on Sunday, September 21 with visitation from 5:00 until the 7:00 p.m. prayer service. Sister Margaret's funeral will be at 3:00 p.m. September 22, with Father Vincent Miller presiding. All services will be in Sacred Heart Chapel, Mount Saint Benedict Monastery, 620 Summit Ave. Crookston, MN. Online registry:





www.stenshoelhouske.com



Funeral Home: Stenshoel-Houske Funeral Home 615 South Minnesota Street Crookston, MN US 56716

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Previous Events

Visitation
Sunday, September 21, 2014
Service
Monday, September 22, 2014
cemetery
Monday, September 22, 2014