Sister Jill Laszewski was clipping along in a successful telecommunications career in the early 1990s when a mission trip to Nicaragua caused a major redirect — toward a religious vocation with the School Sisters of Notre Dame. This year marks the 25th anniversary of her first profession of vows to the order. 

After studying business and economics at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, she moved to the Twin Cities in 1987 from her hometown of Rothschild, Wisconsin, to take a position with St. Paul Fire and Marine Insurance Company (part of St. Paul Companies). That year, she joined Guardian Angels in Oakdale. A small group of parishioners signed up for a mission trip to Nicaragua with the parish pastor, Father Mike Arms, in 1991. They spent 10 days visiting their sister parish in Nicaragua during a time of immense political upheaval in the country. 

“It was amazing,” Sister Jill, 63, said of the experience. “I’d never been to a developing country. I get off the plane in Managua and there’s soldiers with rifles, and you’re like, ‘Ha, I guess I’m not in Kansas anymore.’” 

The group visited poor neighborhoods with three Franciscan Sisters of Little Falls. Spending time with the sisters allowed her to see their communal life more closely, and that stirred an attraction to religious life that started on the flight home and continued back at the parish, where she talked with Father Arms and he directed her to the Vocations Office of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis. 

Eventually, she started doing what she called “convent shopping” and chose three orders to visit and explore. One of them was the SSNDs. At first, she felt attracted to a different order, but eventually realized that the SSNDs were where she felt called. She entered in 1994 and made first vows in 1997 in Mankato. 

Her first assignment was at a ministry in St. Paul called MORE, started by SSND Sister Kathleen Spencer and supported by the religious community. MORE provides refugees and immigrants with education and support. Sister Jill served there until 1999, when she was hired to do IT work for the archdiocese. 

After leaving the archdiocese in 2007, she went to the College of St. Catherine (now St. Catherine University) and earned a master’s degree in theology in 2009.  

And her ministries continued to vary. She worked briefly at Catholic Charities as trafficking victim services manager, and spent six years at an SSND outreach called East Side Learning Center, located in Johnson Elementary School on St. Paul’s East Side, which helps students who are below grade level in reading. The center’s director at the time, Sister Audrey Lindenfelser, is a local SSND community member and lives with Sister Jill in St. Paul. 

In 2019, Sister Jill became part of the community’s North American Vocation Team. One of the team’s five members had moved to another leadership position in the order, and several sisters encouraged Sister Jill to be open to discerning the position. 

“What attracted me was accompanying young people, encouraging them in their faith journey with God, and thinking, ‘How is God calling you?’” she said. “But, the challenge for me is I’m such a high introvert, and this is a very extroverted kind of ministry.” 

Mostly, Sister Jill has traveled to other cities whenever the SSNDs host or participate in vocations events. Currently, she isn’t walking one-on-one with women exploring a religious vocation. But, she does know what’s at the heart of the discernment process. 

“It’s accompanying people to tend their relationship with God, to tend the call they’re feeling,” she said. “It’s not about recruiting. That’s God’s work. God’s the one planting the seed, sparking the fire. We’re there to accompany, to help young adults. … We’re there to just listen and accompany and encourage, and then, God willing, someone resonates with who we are or what we are.” 

As she reflects on 25 years of life as an SSND, Sister Jill cherishes what she calls “the gift of religious life” shared with other members of her community. 

“I know that I have been loved into being in so many ways by the sisters around me,” she said. “And, I know I’ve done more than I thought I could because of both the affirmation and the challenge of living in community. And I think if you’re called to it, community can be very freeing. It can be a wonderful way of life. Every life has its gifts, and every life has its struggles, but it’s so worth it.”