Noreen Terrault, CSJP (1936-2022)
Sister Noreen was born in Edmonton, Alberta, to Emile and Mary (Brenneis) Terrault. She had two siblings, Beatrice and Dorothy. Noreen decided to become a nun when she was in third grade, and she never deviated from that decision. When Sister Noreen was 18, she entered into postulancy on September 12, 1954, and was received into the novitiate of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Peace in Bellingham, Washington, on March 19, 1955. She took temporary vows on March 19, 1957, and final vows on August 22, 1960.
Sister Noreen graduated with a Bachelor of Education degree and, for 13 years, served as a teacher in various elementary schools in Washington, British Columbia and Alaska. In 1976 she began her ministry in healthcare as a phlebotomist in St. Joseph Hospital in Bellingham. She served in various positions in PeaceHealth ministry until her retirement. But it was as chaplain and Supervisor of PeaceHealth’s Spiritual Care Department in Florence, Oregon, that Sister Noreen felt that she lived out her vocation to religious life to the fullest.
Sister Noreen was a wonderful combination of a strong-willed and highly sensitive personality, being especially sensitive to the spiritual and temporal needs of the most vulnerable. Her work in Florence saw a special flowering of that gift. In an interview for the Spring 1998 edition of Peace Times, Jim Barnhart, the Administrator of Peace Harbor Hospital in Florence, identified Sister Noreen as being “a daily visible reminder of the heritage, mission and vision of PeaceHealth and the Sisters of St. Joseph of Peace.” High praise that was well deserved. Sister Noreen was dedicated to her mission, and, when some aspect of either patient care or employee concerns needed to be addressed, she found a way to create an avenue of either redress or engagement.
Sister Noreen was very proud of her Canadian heritage, and one of her favorite models in religious life was Brother André Bessette. On March 19, 1955, she changed her name to Sister Adriana of the Blessed Sacrament. Sister Noreen would eventually, like many sisters, revert to her baptismal name, but she never abandoned her devotion or belief in the true presence of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament. At every summer retreat at St. Mary-on-the Lake, she would request having, at least, an hour of the Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament. And when Holy Thursday provided an opportunity for Eucharistic adoration, Sister Noreen was among those who stayed to the end. Sister Noreen’s life could best be summed up as one of quiet, gentle steadfast service to God and to those around her.