Dental health ministers find reason to smile

A sister never knows where her walk with the Lord will take her.

When Sr. Florita Schneider and Sr. Jessica Zwarra began their walks as Franciscan Sisters of Christian Charity, they expected to become teachers. Instead, their Manitowoc community sent them both to dental school.

That was back in the early 1950s. This year, both are celebrating 50th jubilees as sisters and their 45th as dentists.

Sr. Florita, whose home town is New Franken, was a senior at St. Joseph Academy in Green Bay when she felt "I was called to religious life." She investigated several orders before seeking admission to Manitowoc. Two cousins already belonged. A cousin of Sr. Jessica also belonged.

"She was like a big sister to me," Sr. Jessica said, adding her cousin was "so happy with the love of God . . . (She) sort of inspired me to come here."

After Sr. Florita and Sr. Jessica had taken first vows, they learned their community would be sending them to Marquette University School of Dentistry.

This surprised them both, they said, although Sr. Jessica was the less surprised of the two, since, as a teen-ager, dentistry was one of several careers she had considered.

For several years, a dentist from Manitowoc came once a week to Holy Family Convent, the motherhouse. However, in the early 1950s, the community had become so large that it felt a need for its own dentists. Both women had to take aptitude tests before applying to dental school. Sr. Florita said they never did learn the results, but they must have done well since they were admitted.

There were four women in their class. Back then, dentistry was a man's profession Sr. Jessica said. Marquette limited the number of women in a class to four. Now, she said, "I think there are more women than men in dental school."

The other two women were a missionary sister and a lay woman, Sr. Florita recalled. The class ahead of them had two women, only one of whom graduated.

Sr. Florita and Sr. Jessica graduated and got their licenses in 1958. They set up their dental department at the motherhouse late that summer.

There was already one dental chair in the convent infirmary. A second was added and a partition put between them. For 25 years, they continued that side-by-side relationship, both in work and at the motherhouse.

Then, in 1983, they were sent to live in the convent at Holy Redeemer Parish in Two Rivers. They commuted to their jobs at the motherhouse. Sr. Florita felt the change was made because the community wanted them to experience living "in a smaller convent and to get a taste of parish life."

In 1989, Sr. Jessica moved to Florida to care for her parents who were dying from cancer. Today, she still lives in the Orlando area with her brother, who has the same illness.

In 1997, Sr. Florita moved to Clarks Mills to spend a year at Immaculate Conception Parish. She is now back at the motherhouse working part-time as a dentist. She also works in adminsitration, scheduling transportation to get fellow sisters to appointments and arranging rooms for those who return to the motherhouse for short stays.

Both sisters have used their dental talents to help not only their fellow sisters, but the needy as well. For example, when Vietnamese refugees had newly arrived in the Manitowoc area, Sr. Florita provided dental care for them. Sr. Jessica works once a week at a clinic for the homeless in Orlando, making partials for patients who have lost front teeth.

Their lives as sisters have been beyond their expectations, the two agreed.

"It has been a glorious 50 years," said Sr. Jessica "and I wish there to be many more to follow."

"I have been very happy in just knowing this is where I belong and where I can serve my sisters," said Sr. Florita.

Both feel they have grown closer to the Lord in the last 50 years. Sr. Jessica said it "has been a fantastic experience. We have a good God. I never cease to wonder at His goodness and where He leads me."

The sisters also shared some words of wisdom. "Keep smiling internally and externally," said Sr. Jessica.

Sr. Florita added: "Keep smiling. Trust every day as a new day. Follow the Lord. Don't forget to listen for His call."

Of course, "floss and brush" goes without saying.