Sister Jean Makes a Lasting Impression

We all can remember one or two people who inspired us deeply, touched our spirits, shaped our thoughts and made us want to be like them. To the Sperger siblings, John, Mike, Father Herb, and Mary Jean, that person was Aunt Bernie. 

Aunt Bernie, also known as Sister Jean, was a member of the Dominican Sisters of Hawthorne, Servants of Relief for Incurable Cancer, for 35 years, as well as a licensed practical nurse. She cared for and comforted patients and families during one of the most difficult time of their lives – the journey of facing terminal cancer.

Sister Jean grew up on a dairy farm in Wisconsin in a fun-loving, close-knit family of nine children. She spent a year at teachers college and worked as a bookkeeper for several companies before finding her vocation. The self-described free spirit said she “prayed that God would give me something to fill my life.”

Surprising her family and friends, she joined the Dominican Sisters of Hawthorne and worked in a number of Hawthorne Dominican Homes, including in Philadelphia. Her nurturing and care made a lasting impression on so many patients and their loved ones.

The 50th Wedding Anniversary Gift

Herbert and Maria, parents of the Sperger children, were celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary in 1996. Father Herb, a former chaplain with Redeemer Health, suggested to his siblings that they could commemorate this special occasion and continue the legacy of Sister Jean, who died of cancer in 1991 at age 68, by creating an endowment fund. 

Father Herb and his siblings created The Sister Jean Endowment Fund to benefit hospice patients and their loved ones, especially those facing financial difficulties. Friends and family members gave donations in lieu of anniversary presents to help establish the fund. 

Now in its 25th year, the Sister Jean Endowment continues to provide much-needed dollars that make it possible for patients and families — at a deeply vulnerable time — to receive strength and support from a hospice team that nurtures their physical, emotional and spiritual well-being.

With community resource funding very limited, the Sister Jean Endowment has been a godsend for families without means, said Penny Farrell, a social worker with Redeemer Health. “This fund allows patients to die at home as they want, as their choice,” Penny said. “That is the overall major benefit of this program.”

For example, the Sister Jean Endowment helped a dying woman whose grown children lived at a distance, Penny said. The woman could not afford private care but through the fund was able to get support services so she could stay at home with her two dogs, which was very important to her. 

This year, the Sperger family expanded the use of the fund to assist not just hospice patients with cancer but also those with any terminal diagnosis, including heart disease, dementia and respiratory illnesses, said Redeemer Health Hospice Director of Clinical Operations Coleen McCann, RN, MSN. “Cancer is not our number one diagnosis anymore,” Coleen said.

There also are plans to tap into the fund to be able to send an aide to sit with a person in the hospital who can’t go home until their pain or anxiety is under control, she said. The family also approved use of the fund to assist with programmatic needs, such as ongoing education for hospice team members, Coleen said.

Over the years, the Sperger family’s inspirational gesture has touched countless families who need support during their hospice journey. Their generosity helps us fulfill our mission to care, comfort and heal.

The Legacy of Giving Across Generations

The Sperger siblings’ compassion and generosity are inspiring the next generation of the family.

Michael, the eldest grandson of Herbert and Maria, and his cousins continue Sister Jean’s legacy and pass along the call to care for others in need to the following generations. The family’s gifts bring great joy to many families and memorialize the devotion and spirit of Sister Jean.

 “Through the encouragement of my father, aunts and uncles, we have grown up very close and are faithfully connected to the work of caring for others,” Michael said.

We invite you to inspire others by getting involved and making a difference individually or with your family. Please contact the Redeemer Health Office of Philanthropy at 215-914-4000 or giving@holyredeemer.com, or visit httpps://www.redeemerhealth.org/giving/ways-give.