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Cecilia Kondrc was the daughter of Jan Kondrc and Anna Kondrc (dont know mother's maiden name). I believe that she was born in Brestov...
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Last night I was using GenealogyBank and was researching newspaper articles for obituaries. I was starting oldest to newest, and noticed th...
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I am back trying to connect the dots for Sister Cecilia Kondrc. From previous posts you know she had a book written about her, and a LIFE ...
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Now that I have been going to FHC for two day to look over the microfilm I am starting to wonder if I could not just get a large enough thum...
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I know that I have made many posts about this story, but I like to bring it up every once in a while in the hopes that I might be able to fi...
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Everyone knows that its expensive to do genealogy, but how many people know that there are ways to access some of the database's online ...
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I recently have been playing around with the new Family Tree Beta on 23andMe. I was a little confused with it since I was unsure of which ...
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Lawrence Toomey was born in 1872 in England, or possibly Ireland depending on which census record you care to view. He immigrated to the un...
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So my grandmother's birthday is coming up soon, at the end of this month, and I want to do a few things for her (already talked about th...
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One more week of June has passed with the addition of records and 2 new collections. As of Monday FamilySearch is sitting at 2014 collectio...
Between the ages of 11 & 12 in 1967/68, I read "The Deliverance of Sister Cecilia" & was so moved by the book that, even at such a young age & before anything like internet existed, I researched the Daughters of the Most Holy Saviour in the US, found their US motherhouse in Oakland, California (now closed), & wrote to Sister Ceclia there. By then she was no longer in Oakland but in Indiana, & my letter was forwarded to her there. She very kindly wrote back to me & thanked me for reading her book. She told me all about her experience, in her own words & handwriting, & sent me several recent photos of herself - by then she was wearing a modified habit. Even at age 11 I was struck by her modesty - she didn't feel she had done anything heroic or special, only what she HAD to do to escape & help others do the same. It was all very natural to her to have put her life on the line to help others while fleeing the Communists. She was truly amazing. We
ReplyDeletecorresponded several times over the next few years. She was very sweet & loving. In 1970 I started high school & [foolishly] lost touch with her. From there I went on to college, got married in the 1980s, & no longer had her address in Indiana nor the photos she'd so thoughtfully sent me so many years earlier. I always wondered about her & what might have happened to her. I'm saddened to read she passed away in 1985 - she would only have been 74 - not all that old, by today's standards. I wish now that I still had her letters & photos in my possession as a rememberance of her & her kindness. She was a very special human being, not only for what she did during her escape from Czechoslovakia, but also because she clearly was kind & thoughtful throughout her entire life. It was a privilege to have known her, even as I did, only thru letters & for such a brief few years. I will never forget Sister Cecilia & was blessed to know her.
I read the book The Deliverance of sister Cecilia when I was only 7 years old. My mom took me to meet her at the convent that she was living in and I got to tell her what my favorite parts of the book was. She was such a kind and friendly person. I wish that I had stayed in touch with her too! Her story made me appreciate, even it's such a young age, the importance of freedom.
DeleteI first became acquainted with Sr. Cecelia back in 1965-66 when I purchased her book in one of our school sponsored book sales to encourage students to read. As a young Protestant, a book with a nun on the cover was something that piqued my interest because nuns were very mysterious beings to me, and I often wondered what their life was like. I journeyed with her through the pages of her book while she continually managed to evade those pursuing her until she found her way home to safety. I too tried to contact her, but I wasn't as fortunate as the previous poster to have made contact.
ReplyDeleteSr. Cecelia's story of her unshakeable faith to go against the Communist government and assist people as the fled the country, and eventually her own heroic escape made a profound impression on me, and she was my childhood hero whom I wanted to be able to emulate in some way. To this day I have such admiration for her and have sought in vain to locate a copy of the film about her life that starred Claudette Colbert. I think I am not alone in saying that she loved my many who knew of her only through her story, and although she is no longer among us, her memory will always be very much alive in the hearts and minds of those who shared her incredible journey. By the way I still have the original paperback book of her story, which has fallen apart fomr being read and re-read. I kept it, but I have replaced it with a hardback edition. You are blessed to be related to this remarkable woman!
Hello!
ReplyDeleteI am working on a book that talks about Sister Cecilia Kondrc's life and escape. I recently had a chance to visit her grave. Do you have any artifacts or photographs related to her? Or do you know where I can find any? Like her rosary, prayer card of St. Joseph, etc.? You can reach me at: fjastrzembski10@jcu.edu.
Thanks,
Frank