Quiet Leadership, Lasting Impact

“Be diligent in serving the poor. Love the poor, honor them, my children, as you would honor Christ Himself.”

St. Louise de Marillac

By Associate Angela Anno

While serving at St. Vincent Hospital in Santa Fe, New Mexico, S. Barbara Jeanne Krekeler expanded her nursing skills to include obstetrics.

At a time when many people highlight their accomplishments, S. Barbara Jeanne Krekeler prefers not to take credit for what she has done.

“I just did what I was asked to do,” she said. “I never thought that I did very much.”

Her long history of ministry tells a different story.

The third girl of 10 children, S. Barbara Jeanne attended St. Lawrence and Seton High Schools, both taught by the Sisters of Charity. She followed her parents into the medical field – her mom was a nurse, and her father a pharmacist. After graduating from Seton, she entered Good Samaritan Hospital’s three-year nursing program.

Although she had considered becoming a Sister, S. Barbara Jeanne knew that most women religious at that time were missioned as teachers. She decided to first become a nurse—just in case she decided to enter religious life. She figured her chances of ministering in the medical field were better if she already was a nurse.

She and a friend decided to join the Sisters of Charity together. “I figured I could always leave if I didn’t like it,” she said. Her friend left, but more than 60 years later, S. Barbara Jeanne remains involved in caring ministries, although not quite as actively as she once was.

As a junior Sister, she ministered to older Sisters at Mother Margaret Hall before being missioned to St. Vincent Hospital in Santa Fe, New Mexico. During her nine years there, she expanded her nursing skills, including obstetrics, served as supervisor of four medical units, and founded the first Coronary Care Unit in New Mexico.

S. Barbara Jeanne Krekeler ministered at St. Mary-Corwin Hospital in Pueblo, Colorado, for 19 years.

S. Barbara Jeanne then spent 19 years at St. Mary-Corwin Hospital in Pueblo, Colorado, serving as head nurse, department director, and administrative supervision coordinator. In 1991, she was missioned to Colorado Springs as director of operations for SET (Service, Empowerment, and Transformation), a program that serves the uninsured, underinsured, and Medicaid populations there.

Although she officially retired in 2011, her commitment to the underserved continues. She assists her long-time friend and housemate, S. Nancy Crafton, who directs Los Pobres Center in Avondale, Colorado, which provides food, clothing, and medical care to immigrants and migrants. “Whatever she asks, I’ll do,” S. Barbara Jeanne said.

Over the years she has also served on numerous boards, including Penrose Hospital, the American Cancer Society, St. Joseph Health Care Systems in Albuquerque, SET, and the Sisters of Charity sponsored ministries and Charitable Trust. When time allowed, which wasn’t often, she enjoyed hiking, biking, photography, and birdwatching.

Despite a lifetime of leadership and service, S. Barbara Jeanne continues to describe herself as “just an ordinary person who does what I’m required to do.” In living that spirit of humility, simplicity, and charity, she has quietly touched countless lives.

After more than 60 years of living and ministering in the West, S. Barbara Jeanne Krekeler (right) now delights in welcoming visitors, including Associate Patrice Harty (left).

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