The Sisters of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin were founded on Christmas Day in 1775 by Nano Nagle in Cork, Ireland, to teach poor children. When not teaching, they also ministered to the sick.
The Catholic Church in South Dakota has a long history with the Presentation Sisters, beginning in 1880, when they arrived in the Dakota Territory from Dublin, Ireland, to teach the children of the Lakota Indians and the French settlers in the area. During their first year they experienced the isolation and suffering of the blizzard of 1880.
Eventually, the community grew! The Sisters began teaching throughout what would soon be the Diocese of Sioux Falls. The also openend and staffed Catholic hospitals, the most famous being McKennan Hospital in Sioux Falls.
You can learn more information on the Sisters of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary by visiting the website of their South Dakota Motherhouse in Aberdeen:
http://www.presentationsisters.org
St. Mary, Salem was never blessed with having the Presentation Sisters staff our schools. The first Religious Sisters to staff our schools (and for the longest time) were the Sisters of St. Francis from Milwaukee, Wisconsin. For a few years, we had the Bernardine Sisters of Loretto, PA. The third and last group of Religious to teach at Salem were the Benedictine Sisters from Yankton, South Dakota.
However, in the early 1960’s, during the tenure of the Benedictines, St. Mary High School was honored with the presence of two Presentation Sisters: Sister M. Anne, PBVM (pictured below, photo on the right), taught Social Studies and Biology, and Sister M. Suzanne, PBVM (photo on the left), taught English and Government. The photos below are from the 1962 yearbook of St. Mary High School, Marylight.
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- Sr. M. Suzanne, PBVM
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- Sr. M. Anne, PBVM
