By Sue Schulzetenberg
The Visitor
7-8-11

Benedictine Sister Clare Witzman saw numerous empty chairs during her 55 years of teaching.

Sometimes a child was sick. Other times the student needed to go to an appointment or maybe switched a class schedule. These students could explain their absences.

But some chairs remained empty for a sadder reason, and the children who should have filled their seats would never be there to explain their absence.

“There are lots of teachable moments in the classroom,” Sister Clare said. “I made the point that, ‘These chairs could have been filled if someone didn’t have an abortion.’ ”

Sister Clare, who is retiring from teaching this year after spending most of her life in the classroom, is the winner of the 2011 Humanae Vitae Award presented by the St. Cloud Diocese.

Every year the award is presented to a person who promotes the teachings of the Catholic Church on human life and sexuality. Nominated especially for her dedication to the pro-life movement, Sister Clare has been an advocate for life in both subtle and highly visible ways ranging from engaging in everyday conversations to attending pro-life rallies.

“Sister Clare’s motto is similar to the motto, ‘All that needs to happen for evil to thrive is for good people to do nothing.’ Sister Clare will not stand and do nothing,” said Lorraine Kowitz, a member of St. Mary’s Cathedral in St. Cloud and one of the people who nominated Sister Clare.

Reaching the young
Sister Clare said her awareness of the need to speak out for the pro-life cause began with the U.S. Supreme Court’s Roe v. Wade decision legalizing abortion. She was a principal and teacher at Holy Cross School in Pearl Lake at the time. In light of the court’s decision, all the Holy Cross students circled the outside of the school and held hands in a moment of silence.

At Cathedral High School/John XXIII Middle School, where she taught language arts for 36 years, Sister Clare was in charge of decorating a bulletin board, which always had religious themes. Often, especially in January and October, it had pro-life messages.

In conversations with her students, she talked about the joy of being alive and the importance of welcoming, guarding and protecting life. As faculty adviser for the student-initiated Little Feet pro-life group at Cathedral High School/John XXIII Middle School, Sister Clare saw hope in the youth.

“Young people are very attuned to today’s issues,” said Sister Clare. “My hope is that if we make them aware of the sacredness of life, that should go on into adulthood.”

If you go:
Humanae Vitae Mass
and award reception
When: 7 p.m. July 22
Where: St. Mary’s Cathedral crypt in St. Cloud
For more information: Call 320-252-4721