Heritage Society Member Inspired by Strong Women in her Life
You, our donors, are generous to the Adrian Dominican Sisters throughout your lives. Among you are Heritage Society members who continue that giving spirit past their life on Earth through planned giving: wills, charitable bequests, and insurance policies.
Ruth Ellen Mayhall joined the Heritage Society out of gratitude for the strong women in her life who influenced and inspired her: her mother; her Aunt Ruth, a Methodist Deaconess; and the Adrian Dominican Sisters who taught her at Dominican High School and who befriended her in the years since. "I so admired the nuns and my mother and aunt," she said. "I had such beautiful women in my life."
"My mother was a great role model," Ruth Ellen said. "Due to unfortunate circumstances, she raised three children on her own at a time when women didn't have great-paying jobs. It's amazing that she could send us to parochial school." The sacrifice of the Sisters - living together, sharing responsibilities, and receiving very little pay - allowed the tuition in Catholic schools to be somewhat affordable, she added.
Ruth Ellen is also grateful that her father's family was in her life. "My world was a little bigger because of that," she said. "I admired and appreciated the Methodists, but I was a Catholic. Good works were done by a lot of people of faith."
She was also influenced by her time at Dominican High School. "We learned to serve others. You learn by example, and I had great examples," Ruth Ellen said. Her years at Dominican High School also strengthened her life-long love of music. She took private lessons from Sister Marie Johanna Noeker, OP, who also led the choral group. In addition, Sister Magdalena Ezoe, OP, a composer and pianist, was her homeroom teacher.
While at Dominican High School, Ruth Ellen participated in the school's Christmas Oratorio - one year as Elizabeth and the next year as the Blessed Virgin Mary. She continued her love for music throughout her life, singing in church choirs and as a soloist and for many benefits and fundraising events for charities. She has also been involved in the Grosse Pointe [Michigan] Theater, playing such roles as Marian the Librarian in The Music Man and Eliza Doolittle in My Fair Lady.
"I loved my years at Dominican and to this day thank my hard-working mother for her sacrifices to send me there, which afforded me a great education and many good memories," Ruth Ellen said. "I feel very blessed for the experiences of my four years at Dominican." She showed her love for the school by serving on the committee for the 50th Reunion of the Class of 1962 and by volunteering at a fundraising event to keep Dominican High School alive.
Ruth Ellen came close to entering the Adrian Dominican Congregation and still has a letter from the Sisters, inviting her to visit Adrian and discuss her vocation. However, she said, "I had a gentleman in my life." She and her life partner, Jim Weiss, were "soul mates for nearly 50 years," though they never married. He died four years ago.
Her work life was primarily in administration and management, and included 20 years with the Michigan Restaurant Association - ultimately as its President. She is currently a realtor.
Ruth Ellen has also been involved for about 40 years with the Gleaners Community Food Bank, serving on its Board and eventually on staff as a fundraiser. "I strongly believe in Gleaners' mission to feed our neighbors in need and loved the Gleaners family of fellow employees; all were mission-driven," she said.
Ruth Ellen said she began to give to the Adrian Dominican Sisters when the Catholic Church started holding annual collections each December for the retired Sisters. "I thought I'd give right to the Dominicans."
In addition, Ruth Ellen joined the Heritage Society "because I'm blessed that I can financially do something like that. I want to thank the Sisters as much as I can in any way. It's my thank you to them." She also gave a gift in memory of her mother to the Giving Tree, installed in the Gathering Space of St. Catherine Chapel at the Dominican Life Center in Adrian.
For information on the Heritage Society, contact Amy Palmer, Director of Development, at 517-266-3480 or [email protected] .
