Sister Clarice “Savors” Her Spanish Experience

How would a Midwesterner in a Swiss religious community learn Spanish?  Sister Clarice Korger, upon completing a bachelor’s degree in social work at Augustana College, Sioux Falls, AD, in May 2000, participated in the “Intensa” program in San Jose, Costa Rica, this summer. 

While there, she worked on her Spanish skills – six and a half hours of Spanish classes daily.  She lived the experience of family life, speaking Spanish informally, attending the open market (marcados), and participating in parish liturgy.  “There is no orderly line for communion: Everyone just starts moving and suddenly there is this crowd at the front of the church!”  While in Costa Rica, S. Clarice went to Cartago, the first Spanish settlement in Costa Rica, the El Museo del Ninos (children’s museum), and the National Theater. When asked how the experience affected her, S. Clarice stated, “I’d have to say it made my heart grow bigger and I’m even more appreciative of all I’ve been able to experience since I entered the monastery.”

S. Clarice was introduced to social work at Augustana College.  “I continue to be amazed,” says S. Clarice, “at how well it ‘fits’ me.  The values of the social work profession – respect for the dignity and worth of each human being; respect for a person’s self-determination; social justice; and working with oppressed populations – meet me right where I am.”  While at Augustana College, S. Clarice worked with Lutheran Social Services Refugee and Immigration Programs.  The two main populations were people form Sudan and Bosnia.  “I will carry memories of the people I worked with for a long time.  I learned while at LSS that people – no mater where they come from or what their culture – experience the same pains and joys, and have the same need for one another.”  S. Clarice completed her master’s degree in social work at the Worden School of Social Services, Our Lady of the Lake University, in San Antonio, Texas.  She is currently working for Lutheran Social Services in Sioux Falls, SD.

S. Clarice, the daughter of Richard and Eugenia Korger of Columbus, NE, entered Sacred Heart Monastery in August of 1994.  Prior to entering, she received an LPN degree and worked at Columbus Community and Avera Sacred Heart Hospitals for 10 years.  On August 4, 1996, S. Clarice made her profession as a Benedictine Sister. “I believe this is the way for me to become the best person God wants me to be,” S. Clarice states.