If you call the Benedictine Sisters‘ altar bread department, chances are you will be greeted by Sister Cathleen Marie. She has worked in the altar bread‘s business department since 2001, preparing sales orders, printing invoices and answering the phone in customer service.

Sister Cathleen Marie believes it is a privilege to help prepare the Bread that will become the Body of Christ and enjoys interaction with customers.

In addition to her work in the altar bread department, she is the catalyst behind Monastery Scents, the congregation‘s popular line of handcrafted soaps.

She is a great admirer of Saint Benedict, founder of the Benedictine Order, because he wrote a Rule of Life that has endured for centuries. It has the ability to lead us on the road to holiness and union with Jesus Christ and is a rule that is applicable to lay people as well, she said.

Sister Cathleen Marie Timberlake, OSB
Clyde

As the manager of the Sisters’ altar bread department, Sister Lynn views her job as an extension of their Eucharistic charism - making the Bread that becomes the bread of life.

“My family knows the value of this life and are happy that I‘ve found a place that fits me,” she said.

However, Sister Lynn‘s connection with altar bread production goes even deeper. When she entered the Benedictine Sisters in 1999, she arrived with a biomedical science degree from Texas A&M University.

She soon joined the Sisters in helping to develop a low-gluten altar bread for people with Celiac‘s Disease, a digestive condition that makes it difficult for the body to process wheat products.

“Monastic life is a great adventure,” Sister Lynn proclaimed. “I love that our life is structured around prayer and praise of God and that all the works we do help us become closer to God.”

Sister Lynn Marie D’Souza, OSB
Clyde

If you order some of our low-gluten breads, chances are they were made by Sr. Rebecca Leis who is the main baker for our low-gluten breads. In the past she has also served as co-manager of the AB automation/renovation project as well as worked in customer service in the business office.

“I love the fact that I am producing bread for the Eucharistic life of the Church”, says Sr. Rebecca. “I also enjoy the many challenges that the work affords: striving to figure out a better or more efficient way of doing it and striving to produce a finer quality of bread for our customers. I am gratified to hear the stories of Catholics who would not be able to receive the Eucharistic bread if it were not for our efforts.”

Interested in the medical profession before she entered, she was certified as a Medical Assistant and Emergency Medical Technician and worked part time in Respiratory Therapy at a hospital. Some of her hobbies in the monastery are making pottery, wood working, making leather crafts, sewing and haircutting.

“What I enjoy most about monastic life is knowing that God is making use of my humble efforts at prayer and fidelity in the monastery in His great work of gathering all creation to Himself. And that if, by grace, I live this contemplative life well day-by-day, the lives I may impact number infinitely more than those I might have served in another profession.”

Sister Rebecca Leis, OSB
Clyde