A Cuban American sister’s story

An exile who rediscovered her faith in adulthood and confirmed her vocation during a trip to Assisi, Italy, has become the first Cuban-American to join the Holy Name Province of the Sisters of St. Francis of Penance and Christian Charity.

Sister Maria Elena Larrea, 47, professed her first vows January 14, 2001, in the chapel of Little Flower Church in Hollywood, Florida.

"I'm responding to a call that's beyond me. I can't control it. I can't even describe the joy, the unconditional love of the Lord which helps me to overcome everything," Sister Maria Elena explained.

Sister Maria Elena grew up under communism, afraid to practice Catholicism, for fear that the regime that executed her father would deny her family the right to leave Cuba. The Larreas finally boarded a Freedom Flight for Miami in 1971.

Struggling to make it in exile, she admits that faith was far from her mind. She studied medicine in the Dominican Republic and returned to South Florida to work in health care as a utilization review and quality assurance specialist.

"I started looking at things in a totally different way," she said. "I started seeking more from the Gospel and seeing where God was calling me."

Her zeal to learn more about the faith and deepen her spirituality led her to make a Cursillo retreat, to undergo the Lay Ministry formation program, to work with the Prayer and Life Workshops developed by Father Ignacio Larranaga, and eventually to take part in an "Encounter with God" retreat in Assisi, the birthplace of St. Francis and St. Clare.

In all, Sister Maria Elena said, she spent 11 years "in this process of growth and transformation." But it was only after she attended a discernment retreat with the Franciscans of Stella Niagara that she realized, "Yes, I can do it. And I started feeling such joy."

Sister Maria Elena Larrea Professed Final Vows at Stella on September 3, 2006. In the picture on the left she carried a lamp, symbol of her life as a light to the world. Sisters Claudia Steger and Dorothy Mueller prayed with Maria Elena as she professed her vows. Sisters, associates and friends joined together in song for the liturgy celebration.