Meet Sr. Jannette Marie Pruit, OSF

by Janine Walsh

Sr. Jannette grew up in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi. She was the second of five children, including a set of twin sisters. Her dad was in the Air Force for 21 years with a ranking of S/Sergeant, and her mom was a housewife. She was a Catholic from birth, with some of her favorite memories coming from attending church with her family. She went to church every Sunday with her parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. After church, they would gather at her grandparents’ house to eat, dance, and be together as a family. Sister Jannette remembers being too little to cook with all the women on those Sunday afternoons, so her granddad taught her how to chop the seasonings for the potato salad. She still makes that potato salad today.

In Sister Jannette’s time, she was never encouraged to be a nun. That was frowned upon at the time for a young black girl. Instead, she was married for about four years, and went on to raise her three children, two girls and a boy. She moved to California, and that’s where she felt her and her family blossomed. Sister Jannette went to school and became a certified nursing assistant. In 1990, her mother became sick and she moved back to New Orleans. After her mother passed away, she eventually moved to Indianapolis, Indiana, where she served as Co-ordinator of Black Catholic Ministry in the Archdiocese of Indianapolis. She also started the Boniface Hardin Black Catholic Theology and Spirituality Institute.

Sister Jannette had felt the calling to become a nun beginning in the fourth grade, but that feeling grew when she was around 46 years old. During a life awareness weekend at the Fatima Retreat House, she encountered the Sisters of St. Francis, Oldenburg. Her first contact was Sister Marge Wissman, who oered her the opportunity to see the community and visit Nia Kuumba.

The first time Sister Jannette recalls God opening the door to religious life for her was during her second-year teaching at St. Rita’s. She was working on Kwanzaa plans, looking at materials to use for the celebration, when an item from the bulletin caught her eye. It was an invitation for a “Life Awareness Weekend” to see what it would be like to be a sister. “The bulletin hit me like a ton of bricks, but since I had to finish the Kwanzaa plans, I threw it aside,” Sister Jannette recalls. “But God has a way of making sure we listen to him.”

The paper about the weekend kept showing up again and again. Jannette finally wrote it down on her calendar and called to find out about it. The cost to attend was too high, but again God’s will won out. Through a scholarship that was available, she was able to attend. “I was a bundle of nerves as I packed for the weekend, realizing I wasn’t going to know anyone,” Sister Jannette says. “When I got to the retreat center andstepped up to the check-in table, my nerves melted away. There were priests and nuns from every order milling around.” Sister Jannette enjoyed her time there and entered on August 7,2000. She took her final vows on August 11, 2007 with the full support of her family.

[From the website of the Sisters of St. Francis, Oldenburg]

"We, the Sisters of the Third Order Regular of St. Francis, Oldenburg, are women of prayer,

committed to the Gospel values as lived by St. Francis and Mother Theresa Hackelmeier. From our life in community we are sent to extend the mission of Jesus through our presence and service. Enlivened by a spirit of justice, reconciliation and peace, we collaborate with others in responding to the needs of the world."

Sister Jannette has been nominated for the Harriet Tubman Award multiple times, which honors women who are symbolized as a (Moses of her People) by the National Black Sisters Conference. She also serves on the Board of the National Black Sisters Conference and is a member of the National Association of Black Catholic Administrators (NABCA).

Sister Jannette enjoys sewing, listening to gospel music, and saying her rosaries. She has a special rosary given to her that depicts a black Blessed Mother with baby Jesus in her hands. She enjoys her life as a Sister and her community here, and her life with her biological family who she remains close to as well. We are proud of Sister Jannette’s accomplishments and the joy she brings to the community.