Eulogy for Sister Donna Otter, CSJ
September 22, 1938 – May 19, 2026
Donna Otter was born on September 22, 1938, the daughter of Frank Otter and Margaret Bates Otter. She was baptized on the same day at St. Joseph Church in New Almelo as Donna Regina Otter. Her childhood and adolescence revolved around the typical activities of rural life. Her family lived on a farm north of New Almelo. She says, “We shared in the joys and tasks of working the land and caring for the animals, chickens, and gardens.” Her father’s love for the farm provided for the family’s well-being: food, education, and a strong sense of God who tenderly cared for all of creation. A large dam in the pasture, in addition to helping prevent soil erosion, gave the family a place to fish in the summer and ice skate in the winter. Her mother’s deep love for nature and her artistic touch nurtured her creativity and sensitivity to all things; we know that this is why Irma Donna has such a love for decorating, which is why she would often come to add her magical touch to our dining room when she saw that it wasn’t very pleasant. Her older brothers and sisters—Alvin, Virginia, Irene, and Marion—and her younger sister, JoAnn, as well as her grandparents (Bates and Otter), also contributed greatly to who she is today. Throughout her life, she was always surrounded by many people; even though she was a woman of few words, her funny faces, her playful expressions, and her shy smile spoke volumes.
Her vocation was awakened at an early age within her family, as she had two sisters who entered the convent before her: Francis Margaret and Mary Esther. And, her vocation and love for foreign missions were also awakened in her life even before she entered the convent. She says, “For as long as I can remember, I have felt the desire to be a ‘sister.’” A deep curiosity and admiration for foreign missions was sparked by Dad’s faithful donations to the Columban Fathers and, consequently, by receiving their Far East Magazine, which I read, from cover to cover.”
When Donna was finishing 7th grade, Virginia entered the convent and became Sister Francis Margaret. The following year, Irene chose the Sisters of St. Joseph as her vocation and became Sister Mary Esther. From then on, she began to wonder… “maybe… maybe… There is another path for me.” And she searched for it throughout high school. “In my senior year, a girl from Leoville returned home and spoke to the students about her life as a Maryknoll Sister. Once again, the desire for religious life returned.” However, she chose to continue her education. Her parents took her to Marymount College in September 1956. From there, they went on to Concordia to visit Sister Francis Margaret, who was teaching there. While in Concordia, her father decided to take advantage of the new hospital to get a physical checkup. Her father’s checkup led to hospitalization, and there, weeks later, he was called to eternal life. During that same year, her brothers were choosing their vocational paths. Family life was changing. She felt she needed time to come to terms with everything and decided to stay in New Almelo with Mae and JoAnn, since Marion and his fiancée, Marilyn, were willing to take care of the farm. But her childhood longings persisted. She wrote to Maryknoll, but never received a reply. When she told Sister Maura, who had been her 8th-grade teacher, about this, she said, “Join the Sisters of St. Joseph. We don’t have a foreign mission right now, but we will soon.” In September 1958, she asked to join the Sisters of St. Joseph of Concordia. Together with 15 other young women, she then began her formation in the Congregation. On March 19, 1959, she received the habit and took the name Sister Frances de Chantal.
In 1961, she began teaching in Aurora, Illinois. In 1963, she took her perpetual vows, graduated from Marymount College, and taught her first semester in Chicago, Illinois. While teaching in Oakley, Kansas, in February 1965, she received a phone call from Mother Helena, offering her the opportunity to fulfill another dream. Mother Helena asked whether she wanted to join our mission in Brazil. “Of course, I’ll go.”
She went on to say that “in three weeks there would be a Missionary Ceremony where she and Sister Rosa Marie Dwyer would receive the mission cross. Sister Rosa Marie would leave for Brazil shortly after, and I would return to Oakley to finish the school year and then travel to Brazil with Sister Margarida, who would return in July.“In July, she said, “I left what I knew to embark on the unknown. For the next 28 years, I was called Sister Francisca and shared life with the Brazilian women and our native CSJ community in Piauí, Tocantins, Pará, and Maranhão, Brazil.” In 1993, she felt the need to discern what her future might hold. “I requested an extended stay in the United States. This led to training in therapeutic massage, volunteering at the juvenile detention center in Salina, directing a homeless shelter in Junction City, and parish ministry in Ellis, Kansas—all of which I loved deeply.” Those years in the United States also gave her the chance to be with her mother during her final years.
In 2005, remembering that Sr. Pat Neihouse was celebrating her golden jubilee and had never taken time off from the mission, she offered to return to Brazil. The offer was accepted, and she returned to spend another 10 years there.
Sister Donna (Francisca), who arrived in Teresina in 1965 (and 60 years have already passed), was then known as Sister Francis de Chantal. A sunny and very hot day. She descended the stairs of that enormous plane, a VARIG Boeing, at the old Santos Dumont Airport, now known as Petrônio Portela. A large, eager crowd awaited her. It was a novelty and a source of joy for the Church of Vila Operária. There she found her fellow sisters, priests, catechists, members of the Little Crusaders, Legionaries, and others… it was a very warm welcome. And Sister Francisca, seemingly frightened—shy as she was—was welcomed by everyone with great joy. She soon became involved in the parish’s work, embracing especially the social programs carried out at the Social Centers linked to the parish, such as São José, Santo Afonso, Matinha, and Imaculada Conceição. An initiative that, at the time, was of great importance within the Archdiocese. Together with Father Dionísio, a Redemptorist Missionary, and other sisters in the community, she carried out this work with great competence, dedication, and professional skill. It is worth noting that this ministry encompassed everything from courses in sewing, embroidery, and hand painting to children’s catechesis, youth and adolescent formation, and practical horticulture. And, everything was carried out with great commitment and dedication. Sister Francisca, a woman of few words, yet this trait did not prevent her from building a great legacy of wisdom, listening, solidarity, and total dedication to those who needed her and wherever she went. Without much talk or loud laughter, but with a transparent and sincere smile that reached her eyes.
In 2014, when the house in Graca Aranha, Maranhão, closed, she, along with Sr. Lucia and Alexsandra, opened the community in Caxias, in the Parish of Nazaré. We lived there for a year, and then she decided to return to the United States. During that year, we lived in Caxias and had many adventures together. One day, Sr. Lucia and Sr. Donna(Francisca) went for a walk in the city center. They didn’t know the city of Caxias very well yet, and, already tired from walking and almost starving, they waited over half an hour for the bus. As soon as they got on, the bus turned the corner, so they got off because the house was very close and they could walk there. They looked at each other and smiled. She said, “We wasted a lot of time waiting for the bus instead of just walking.”
In 2015, she left Brazil once again to return to the United States, but this time it was a farewell to a beloved land that she surely carried in her heart. Shortly after returning, she moved to El Paso, Texas. There, for the next three years, she coordinated our hospitality house with Sr. Missy Ljungdahl. In 2018, they both moved to Concordia, Kansas. Since 2018, she has lived at the Motherhouse and served in every way she could. Her dedication to the prayer board and the decoration of the dining room showed her love for her sisters and her desire to give her best. Her silence and her missionary zeal taught us much about life through the eyes of love. In her final moments, she did not forget her Brazilian sisters or the Portuguese language, for she even prayed the rosary in Portuguese with Sr. Luciene. Thank you, Sister Donna, for such great love for this Congregation; you truly left a legacy as a true missionary.