In Memoriam: Mary Elizabeth Gentges

Those of us old-timers with the good fortune to have subscribed to Father Fred Nelson's excellent newspaper THE MARYFAITHFUL remember a regular feature written and illustrated by Mary Elizabeth Gentges. These articles introduced a wide assortment of little-known Chaplets - beautifully drawn in ink, and explained the method of praying each of them.

In the fall of 1981, this same Mary Gentges came for a visit to St. Mary's campus, and fell in love with it. As she was leaving to go home, her new friends told her, "You'll come back...you belong here."

And so it came to pass. Shortly after, Charles and Florence Gentges and their daughter Mary (whom they always called "Bitzi"), closed the small-town Ben Franklin store they had run as a family for years, and migrated to Mary's town -- to the picturesque Victorian house that would be their home for the rest of their lives.

Mary Elizabeth enrolled in St. Mary's College. While a student there, she lived on campus and worked hard at her studies. After graduating she began a career of service to St. Mary's, above and beyond the call of duty, in numerous capacities: on Crusade magazine (as editor, writer, photographer, puzzle maker, etc.); on St. Mary's magazine (she had previously contributed to The Angelus), including writing a chronology of historic St. Mary's Mission and campus; as the ubiquitous Campus Photographer for all occasions; as the typing teacher; and in countless special projects requiring her special talents (as well as helping her parents at home, making rosaries, giving piano lessons, and so forth).

Mary was devoted to her parents and took very good care of each of them in their last days. Caring for her mother, who became ill with dementia, was especially stressful and exhausting -- emotionally and physically -- but Mary found helpers and kept Momma at home for as long as was humanly possible.

She had never married, and was sometimes oppressed by loneliness after the loss of her parents. But Mary always kept busy, and always had projects and ideas. She had plans for the fall of 2017. Mary was hoping, "if God gives me back my health," to have a rosary booth in the next Flint Hills Shakespeare Festival. But instead God gave her something more important, more "CRUCial" to do - something to benefit all of Christendom.

Last October a new Rosary Crusade was declared. We were all called upon to be crusaders, saying rosaries and making sacrifices, and Mary was asking herself what sacrifices she might make. As if in answer, her final illness manifested itself in a painful stiff neck, which worsened steadily over a period of months while the excruciating pain spread and became disabling and finally incapacitating.

When hospitalization became unavoidable, Mary left her beloved home, her projects, her plans, her constant cat-companions Shadow and Bootsie, the watercolors painted by her father, the family heirlooms, all her earthly possessions...and never returned.

It hadn't occurred to Mary to offer herself as a Victim Soul, and she was horrified at being called one by anybody. Yet God knew perfectly well that she would do whatever He asked of her, and do her best. And so she had been drafted right into the front lines of the Rosary Crusade, where she battled bravely, suffered patiently, and ultimately reposed.. Over and over she had offered the pain, anxiety, fear, loneliness, and finally her helplessness to Our Lord -- particularly for the intentions of the Rosary Crusade.

Visitors to Mary's hospital room were often consoled to find themselves smiling and laughing at her characteristic dry wit, which she never lost until she lost consciousness. But most consoling of all was knowing that she was so ready for death when it finally came on March 12th, 2017 -- Transfiguration Sunday, in the Month of St. Joseph. We have every reason to hope that she is now on her way home to God, and we can imagine the beautiful reunion with her parents in eternity, but I think Mary would shake her head, make a wry face, and insist that we remember she is a poor sinner in urgent need of our prayers.

Mary's death has left a hole in St. Mary's that cannot be filled, and her friends are heartbroken. But because of our love for her we must pray for her and not forget!

Please join us in paying our debt of gratitude to a valiant comrade in this vital crusade: Eternal rest grant unto Mary Elizabeth, O Lord, and let Perpetual Light shine upon her. May she rest in peace! Amen.