Sister Grace Mary Croft, SDS
International Leader Believes “We are all one in the Family of God”

When she entered Divine Savior High School in 1952, Grace Mary Croft fell in love with every aspect of high school life. She was impressed with all of her high school teachers, many of whom were Sisters of the Divine Savior (SDS). “They liked us and they liked teaching us,” she explained.

Some of her classmates would become lifelong friends and, in some cases, Salvatorian Sisters as well. The students had an infectious spirit born of being part of a high school that was relatively new. At fourteen, she never dreamed that one day she would return to the campus as a history teacher and a member of the administration. She later ministered as the candidate and novice directress, served on SDS Leadership Teams and then as the Leader of the North American Province.

Sister Grace taught at DS and then Divine Savior Holy Angels High School (DSHA), 4257 N. 100th Street, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, from 1962 to 1975 and then from the fall of 1976 to 1980. “I loved the give and take with the students. My best moments are related to teaching. Teaching is a wonderful way to reach young people and explore all the possibilities of reaching their full potential. Years later, one young alumna told me that I had helped her believe in herself and that she could do anything she put her mind to. Those are words that I cherish to this day,” she said.

During her years in the ministry of provincial leadership, she especially enjoyed the opportunities to work with lay people in the sponsored institutions; and the increased collaboration between the Salvatorian priests and brothers, lay members and sisters. “I was impressed with these men and women and they took us and us and our mission seriously and to heart,” she continued.

Today, Sister Grace Mary is serving her third term on the congregational leadership team known as the Salvatorian Generalate in Rome, Italy. The six-woman Team consists of women from around the world. The leader is Sister Therezinha Rasera, of Brazil. Sister Grace Mary is a councilor and secretary of the Team.

“We are women of different cultures and customs and this has been an opportunity for me to walk in other people’s views. We are all Salvatorian women completely committed to our mission of bringing a loving Savior to others, to our Congregation and to one another. We are friends and teammates.”

“I feel that this international experience has helped me to understand how we are all one in the family of God and that we all serve this God,” Sister Grace Mary stated.

As she reflects on fifty years as a vowed Salvatorian Service, Sister Grace Mary has an attitude of deep gratitude.

“In this lifestyle, God has put into my life people who have challenged me, believed in me, called me out of myself and shown me who God is. I believe that my vocation is a love story. It is a story of growing each day in what it means to return with love and joy, the gift of my life to God who has blessed me so generously.”