The Sisters of the Holy Family of Nazareth have touched and changed the lives of people across the country. This year, as the sisters celebrate their 125th anniversary, they continue to answer the needs of the church in areas important for families: education, healthcare, social services, parish and prison ministry. As in their beginning, they look to the model of the Holy Family of Nazareth. Blessed Frances Siedliska, the Polish nun who founded the congregation in 1875, chose Rome, the heart of the Catholic world, as its home for a reason. She wanted the sisters to minister internationally. Ten years later, on July 4, 1885, 11 sisters from the congregation came to the United States to help Polish immigrants in their journey to find a better future. On July 6, they arrived at St. Josaphat Parish in Chicago, where they opened a school and began caring for orphans. Today, 1,400 sisters minister in 12 countries. In the United States alone there are about 340 sisters working across the country from one province. That province, headquartered in Des Plaines, was created when five provinces merged in 2007. “We are back to our roots where everything began,” said Holy Family of Nazareth Sister Michael Mari Franzak, who is leading the province’s 125th anniversary committee. Although the sisters have ministered in Chicago in many different ways, they are mostly known from their work in Catholic schools and from opening in 1894 St. Mary of Nazareth Hospital Center. Currently, St. Mary and other Holy Family of Nazareth healthcare institutions are part of Resurrection Health Care Chicago, sponsored by the Sisters of the Holy Family of Nazareth and the Sisters of the Resurrection. “When I listen to people who had the sisters in schools or knew them from the hospital visits, one thing is always mentioned: how warm and carrying they are,” said communications director Judy Horak. The sisters are observing their 125th anniversary in several ways. The celebration began on Aug. 15 with a Mass celebrated by Auxiliary Bishop George Rassas at St. Emily Church in Mount Prospect. They also are planning “a year long pilgrimage,” during which they would like to visit all parishes and sites they used to work for. “We want just to celebrate a Mass and then to be with people of that community to show them we care. It is a wonderful experience to reconnect with families,” said Franzak. While visiting parishes in Chicago and in Indiana, they will share cards with a special prayer created for entrusting families to the Holy Family of Nazareth. Ten thousand cards were printed in thanksgiving. The celebration will end on July 4, 2011 when the U.S. sisters will gather for an assembly in Chicago.