Reflections - Sister Sara Delaney

Growing up near the Ursuline Campus in Louisville, Sister Sara Delaney got to know the Ursuline Sisters at an early age. Through grade school at Holy Spirit and high school at Sacred Heart Academy, her love for the community was nurtured by excellent teachers. In her senior year, following a prediction by her home room teacher, Sister Pat Lowman, that there would be six vocations from the class, Sister Sara found herself saying yes. "Somewhere in there, I listened." Sara was twelve when her father died, leaving five young children. Her mother, Virginia, who is a Lifetime Ursuline Associate, held the family together. Sister Sara describes her mother as a strong, independent, creative woman, who even when Sara joined the convent, found innovative ways to stay connected with her daughter, either offering to drive the sisters for appointments off campus or using her photography skills to capture the beauty of the campus.

For Sister Sara, there was never a doubt about her teaching career. Her Ursuline teachers instilled in her a great love for learning. Part of her attraction to religious life was that she saw the sisters as normal people, fun to be around, and deeply committed to their ministry. Her love of math was sparked especially by Sister Theodora Breighner, "who could talk about anything and had the ability to get things across to students." Being a member of the Ursuline community has given Sister Sara many opportunities to pursue her passion for teaching math. She has come to realize that "the small things I can do to help children learn really do make a difference." In recent years, following the loss of a very close friend, Sister Sara's love of math and teaching helped her through difficult times. "I was able to change the way I teach math and move to a new level of involvement." She attributes the abiding support of her prayer group and community with helping to make the adjustments she had to face. Her awareness of the beauty and infinite variety in God's creation whether in art, nature or the complexity of numbers, has inspired her own creative expression through sewing, oil painting and gardening. Her latest innovation is a squirrel-free tomato cage for her garden. Sister Sara continues to teach with dedication and love, both for her subject and for her students. Her hope is to instill in them the same passion for learning that she received from the Ursuline Sisters who taught her over the years.