Sister Ethel Mary Tinnemann, professor, historian, political activist, researcher, author, cat love, gardener, athlete, and champion of the underprivileged. Tonight we gather to express our appreciation and love for this unique, dynamic, remarkable woman. Though she often tried to hide her emotions, she was not able to hide her warm and compassionate heart.

Sister Ethel and her twin sister Jeanne were born in Oakland, September 8, 1916 and raised in Oakland and Berkeley. She was proud of the fact that she spent 84 of her 91+years of life in these two cities, and often mentioned the ties she and her family had to the University of California. Her grandparents had moved their family to Berkeley from San Francisco to make it easier for their children to attend the University. Sister Ethel's mother Sue Parrish, and her father Otto Tinnemann, graduated from the University in the same class, and met during the Senior Ball.  At one time during her college years, Ethel counted seven first cousins on the campus.

Following her public grammar school years, Sister Ethel and her twin sister Jeanne, attended junior high at the Lake, and went on to Holy Names High School. It was during those years that their brother Ted, a senior at UC, was killed in an auto accident. This was a great tragedy for the family.

Upon graduation from high school Ethel enrolled at the University of California. She graduated with honors and a Phi Beta Kappa key in 1938, and was women's tennis champion during her junior year. She earned an M.A. in history and a teaching credential at U.C. before entering the Sisters of the Holy Names.

In her letter to Sister Catherine of Siena in March 1941 requesting to enter the Community, Ethel writes “Although I have not both parents’ consent, I am now twenty-four years old and have had this desire to enter since my senior year in high school. I hope I am doing God’s will for me, and I ask you to accept me into the Novitiate this July. I also ask your prayers, especially for my parents because the next months will be hard for them.”

Sister Ethel entered the Community in July 1941 and made vows in August 1943. She taught high school classes for 13 years, at St Andrew’s, Ramona and Holy Names High School before returning to the University of California, where she earned a PhD. in Modern European History in 1960. For the next 45 years she devoted her life to Holy Names College, now Holy Names University. They were years of strong commitment to teaching, to scholarship, to her students, to political activism, and to her family. During those years, she also did extensive research on the Nazi period of German history, and came to the conclusion that citizens must protest the policies of their governments, which seem to violate human rights.

So with Sister Ethel Mary’s passion for accurate history came a second passion, one for the power of the vote, and for political positions that would promote justice and a better life for all. She engaged interested students in many activities related to her political activism. Early on she joined the League of Women Voters and walked the poorer neighborhoods of Oakland to register new voters. In 1999 the Secretary of State, inducted her into the Voters Hall of Fame. She brought many political speakers to campus; two that I remember are Ethel Kennedy and journalist Roger Mudd. She sponsored student debates on current issues, taught Oakland history in neighborhood venues, led walking tours of historic Oakland areas, and lectured to the Oakland Police on the history and multiculturalism of Oakland. She was appointed by Mayor Wilson to three terms on the Land Marks Preservation Advisory Board, served on the Cameron-Stanford House Board, and was included in the San Francisco Examiner’s 1992 story on the Bay Area ‘Movers and Shakers’. She was honored by the League of Women Voters, and the HNC Alumni Association. She wrote a history of the Parrish Family (her mother’s family) from 1680 to 1938 and a “History of Holy Names College.” 

Images that come to mind of Sister Ethel during those years are: swimming laps in the College pool at 7am every morning; washing a line-up of college cars parked outside the convent back door early every Saturday; turning out lights and locking doors in every building at the college, every night including Sundays and holidays; cultivating roses and vegetables in her patio garden, and distributing her tomatoes making sure that each person received at least one; serving as precinct captain in her local precinct for many elections in the 1980s and 90s; standing with clip board in hand at many civic gatherings to register voters.

In 1997 Sister Ethel retired from full-time teaching and received the title Professor Emeritus. She continued to keep office hours and interact on a regular basis with students. She was an avid fan of the Holy Names basketball and volleyball teams becoming one of their most ardent supporters.

In the fall of 2005 Sister Ethel was asked to move to Los Gatos, which she did rather reluctantly, with her cat Suzie. Ethel moved to the main convent and Suzie was welcomed by Sister Genie Rohner to join her cat Cinnamon at the Villa. Sister Ethel walked to the Villa two or three times a day to feed and pet Suzie. Her interests at CHN included daily Mass, visits to Suzie, swimming in the pool, and as often as possible, a game of bridge. She often said she was bored, and could not regain interest in some of her early hobbies, such as gardening. Very special days for her were those when her niece or nephews came to visit, or when someone offered to take her to see a basketball or volleyball game at Holy Names.

On the afternoon of June 28, 2007, while returning from a visit to feed Suzie at the Villa, Sister Ethel fell and hit her head. Although she tried to convince everyone she was fine, a fast trip to Los Gatos Community Hospital to treat a cut on her head, stretched out to seven days in the hospital and a dramatic change in her condition. On her return to the Care Center she needed and accepted graciously the full-time care that was so generously given to her by the staff. Life was made bearable by visits from family, friends and the Sisters, as well as Sister Genie’s efforts to provide opportunities to see Suzie. She usually greeted whoever approached her with a smile. After a slow steady decline she gave up her life just after midnight on March 11.

James Martin in his current book, “My Life with the Saints” gives many examples to illustrate the point that saints are people who are attuned to and follow God’s unique plan for their lives.  I think Sister Ethel’s life is another example of this truth.

And from her heavenly perch, I can imagine Ethel involving her family and friends in a voter registration campaign during this important election year. So I feel urged to add, be sure you are registered to vote, and be sure to vote, to make our nation and our world more just, peaceful and safe for all, especially the disadvantaged.

                                                                        Sister Marguerite Kirk, SNJM