I am the sixth of seven children born to John and Elizabeth Cogan. I grew up on the family ranch between Nathrop and Buena Vista, Colorado. The Arkansas River runs through the Cogan Ranch and it is by the river that I found my quiet, spirit-filled time by fishing and wandering in secluded areas. When the Cogan children were little, our birthdays were celebrated not by getting a gift, but by choosing our cake and by having freedom from chores – a day to call our own. Christmas shopping was done from mail-order catalogs; we could each pick out a gift that cost no more than a dollar. Memories such as these still make me smile as I remember my youth and life on the ranch in the beautiful mountains of Colorado.
After graduating from Buena Vista High School in1950, I went to Mount Saint Scholastica College in Atchison, Kansas. In 1952, the middle of my sophomore year, I entered the Benedictine Convent of Mount Saint Scholastica, also in Atchison. I made vows in 1953. After receiving my Bachelor degree in Education from the Mount I received an Masters degree in Mathematics from St. Mary’s University in Winona, Minnesota. I also attended Notre Dame and the University of Minnesota. After teaching five years in Kansas, I was missioned to schools in Colorado. These years were spent in Walsenburg, Capulin, Antonito, Denver, Colorado Springs and finally at Benet Hill Academy.
I am a charter member of Benet Hill Monastery of Colorado Springs. Both at prayer and in the finance office, I have endeavored to serve the Benet Hill Community with love and integrity. I worked in the finance office in summers and part time while teaching, then full time after the Academy closed. During these years my two greatest joys were to research and implement the community decisions to add medical and retirement benefits for the employees, and to make investments with socially responsible companies. I also brought the finance office into the computer age.
I have deepened my prayer life and love of family and community through many years of illness and physical suffering which has given me a sense of peace and acceptance. Others tell me that this sense of being at peace radiates from me. I continue to serve as a cantor for Liturgy of the Hours and Sunday worship, and I sing in the Schola. I enjoy reading, knitting, crocheting, computer games and working jigsaw puzzles.
