African sojourn pleases nun with Schenectady roots

Tuition and room and board at St. Aloysius Minor Seminary in Kumbo, Cameroon, is just $240. But the tuition often isn't paid in currency.

"Some pay in kind," said Sister Louise Finn, CND, teacher and bursar at the African school and a former teacher at Notre Dame-Bishop Gibbons School in Schenectady. "Some pay with goats or yams. Or they say, `I could sell my wheelbarrow.' Parents pay what they can."

Life in Cameroon is different from life in Schenectady for the 68-year-old sister, but she feels the African republic is the right place for her, calling it "an opportunity to learn."

Coming together

In Cameroon, she is able to see how the many pieces of her life fit together, from her ability to mend sweaters to her years as a parishioner at St. Helen's Church in Schenectady, and her experiences working on the Indian reservations of South Dakota.

"What I'm able to do [in Cameroon] is a result of my past experiences," she told The Evangelist during a recent visit home. "I have gratitude for being able to see how God has been able to take the experiences of my life and turn them into a useful pattern."

At St. Aloysius, Sister Louise teaches English and Latin to boys ages 11 and up who are studying for the priesthood. To get into the school, a student must be known to his pastor as being a good kid and have a real desire to be a priest, she explained. They must also take an entrance exam that consists of English, religion and math. There are 150 students enrolled at the school, which was established five years ago by her religious order, the Sisters of the Congregation of Notre Dame.

Just kids

Of her students, she said, "They're spirited. Their abilities vary from slow to keen. They're normal, adolescent boys."

The boys come to school speaking three to four languages, including their tribal language, pidgin English and French. Once at the school, they are paired with an older student who teaches them how to use eating utensils and how to make their beds.

The seminary, like much of northwest Cameroon, has no electricity or plumbing. Some of the boys come from homes with dirt floors; others are more well off and have cement floors. Others actually come from homes that house boys or girls who do chores for the family.

Poverty

The people of Cameroon are poor by American standards.

"A few days before I left, I went to see a woman and her four children," Sister Louise reported. "They live in a one-room house and cook outside. The house was neat and tiny, and had only one bed."

During her visit, the mother took out her finest things. "There was a small cloth bag," Sister Louise recalled. "In it, was her Bible and a pencil that had been sharpened with a razor blade. It was THE pencil for the family. These were their treasures."

To further illustrate the poverty of Cameroon, Sister Louise shared a story of the holidays: "On Christmas day, the little kids come to the houses for candy and oranges. They're wearing their best clothes. Some of the kids had their Christmas toy with them. It was a balloon, and they were happy. For some of them, it's the only time they have meat."

Touched by people

The way the children appreciate a balloon, or seeing a family treasure a Bible and a pencil touches Sister Louise.

"A highlight is how good these people are in spite of their poverty," she said. "They're not looking for a lot of things. They're teaching us. A high point is seeing the simplicity of the people and their desire to be good."

She described the agricultural lifestyle as a hard way to make a living. "The farmers have small plots on the hot side of the hill," she explained. "There are no good produce markets, and they often can't get their food to the market because of the bad roads."

Sisters' efforts

Sister Louise and the three other members of her community serving in Cameroon are touching many lives. Besides Sister Louise's work at the seminary, sisters work at the parish and diocesan level with families, couples, children and single mothers.

"We're four very different people reaching out in different areas. A lot of people are being touched, and we're being touched," she said.

An indication of the impact of these women religious is that four young women from Cameroon are entering the pre-novitiate. The sisters have also just started an associate program.

"We've invited some old and young Cameroonian men and women to be associates, and learn about Marguerite Bourgeoys [the order's foundress] and the charism of the order," Sister Louise said. "It's been a wonderful experience for us."

Sorrows

While there are many high points to her work in Cameroon, there are difficulties as well.

"The most heartbreaking thing is the wasted lives I sometimes encounter," she said. "Despite their efforts, they can't seem to pull above. Also discouraging is the way poverty affects health."

She reported seeing people crippled by polio despite the fact that the vaccine would have cost only ten cents.

Women's lot

Another discouragement for Sister Louise Finn is the degradation of women, who are not highly regarded in Cameroon. Unmarried mothers are a big problem, she reported. Other women are abandoned by their husbands, and still others find their husbands practice bigamy by having wives in other villages.

Through the work of the four members of the Congregation of Notre Dame, many women are changing the way they think of themselves.

"We're seeing women somehow come to realize how worthy they are, that they have God-given rights," she said.

While some may think the work Sister Louise is doing is difficult, she disagrees, noting: "I think working in New York City or Chicago is much harder than where I am."

(Anyone interested in supporting Sister Louise's work at St. Aloysius may send contributions to: Sister Jeanne Beaudoin, CND, Missionary Service, 4873 Westmount Avenue, Montreal, Quebec, Canada H3Y1X9).

(09-04-97)

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