The daughter of the late John Michael and Mary Sargo Timko, she was born in September 1936 in Trenton, New Jersey.

Sister Jean Marie entered the novitiate of the Dominican Sisters of Newburgh, New York in September 1956, made her First Profession in August 1958, and Final Profession in August 1961. She earned her BS in Elementary Education from Mount Saint Mary College in Newburgh NY and her MA in Theology from St. John’s University, Jamaica NY.

Sister Jean Marie started out as an elementary school teacher. She taught at Saint Paul School in Jersey City NJ, Academia San Jose Elementary School in Guaynabo, Puerto Rico, Our Lady of Lourdes School in Paterson NJ, Saint Cecilia School in Iselin NJ, St. Thomas School in Cornwall, NY, and Holy Rosary School in Hawthorne NY. She was a member of the infirmary staff at Mount Saint Mary Convent in Newburgh NY. Sister was also involved in religious education at Holy Family Parish in Flushing NY. Since 1984, she has been engaged in a ministry of prayer, Healing through God’s Word, Inc., in Thermopolis, Wyoming until her illness brought her back to the Dominican Sisters Center of Hope in Newburgh, NY.

Reflections by Sister Jeanette Redmond, OP:

Acts 16:25-32 (It’s the story about Paul and Silas who are thrown into prison because they preached about Jesus.)

About midnight, while Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God as the prisoners listened, there was suddenly such a severe earthquake that the foundations of the jail shook; all the doors flew open, and the chains of all were pulled loose. When the jailer woke up and saw the prison doors wide open, he drew (his) sword and was about to kill himself, thinking that the prisoners had escaped. But Paul shouted out in a loud voice, "Do no harm to yourself; we are all here." He asked for a light and rushed in and, trembling with fear, he fell down before Paul and Silas. Then he brought them out and said, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?" And they said, "Believe in the Lord Jesus and you and your household will be saved." So they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to everyone in his house.

Can’t you hear Jean Marie saying: “Believe in the Lord Jesus and you and your household will be saved.” Can’t you hear her speaking the word of the Lord to him and to everyone in his house. That’s how Jean Marie lived and died. Her faith was vibrant and compelling. Jean Marie witnessed many physical healings. Healing is a by-product of faith. Faith enables one to live in the present moment with joy. Faith gives birth to and nourishes compassion. Faith enables one to endure anything at any time. Faith gently leads one over the bridge of this earthly life to the shore of eternal life.

Jean Marie had the qualities of faith—joy, compassion, endurance and hope of eternal life with Jesus in whom she had so much faith.

May she enjoy eternal life and everlasting peace. Amen.

Reflections by Mrs. Judith E. Navetta, Hope Associate:

Where does one begin, having just lost a dear friend of fifty-one years? I guess I'll go back to December 6 when I went to visit Jean Marie at Kaplan Hospice. Not having seen her for almost two months, the change was a shock to me. Jean slept most of the time I was there. She was a shell of the woman I had known. In my mind I visualized the beautiful person who had given fifty-three years of her life to God and community as a Dominican sister. But really, who was Jean Marie Timko?

A Trentonian and proud of her Slovak background, Jean knew early on she had a religious vocation. At fIrst there was opposition from her family, but this did not dissuade her from entering. Jean prayed, worked, saved her money, packed her trunk and headed to Newburgh to enter the Dominican Sisters, Congregation of the Most Holy Rosary, in September 1956. All the rest is a history that we all share.

I met Jean on a cool fall afternoon in 1958. A group of us postulants were leaving the Casa on our way to prayers. Jean was standing outside braying, "Who's Judi from Jersey City?" All of you, knowing Jean, I'm sure can picture the scene. Fully aware of the fact that I wasn't supposed to talk to this Junior Professed sister I timidly answered,

"I'm Judi." And guess who was standing behind me. Right. Sr. Imelda Marie. That encounter got me an extended rosary. And so began our friendship. From that embarrassing, audacious beginning, I knew Jean would playa special part in my life.

Her free spirit was an essential element of her deep and abiding love for Jesus. Asking her to pray for an intention or to pray with me was always a spiritual encounter. Jean personified the essence of St. Dominic, always a smile on her face, a prayer in her heart and a commitment to spread the Gospel of the Lord to all. Whether we were teaching, spending time at the hospital for lepers in Puerto Rico, riding horseback in the compo while visiting families, or more

recently participating at an Assembly, or praying at a Charismatic weekend, I always came away with far more than I could give her. Jean was always there for me... .praying for and with me when I made my decision to leave the convent, when I told her I was getting married, then through my pregnancies and births. She attended the baptisms, First Communions, Confirmations, graduations, and helped me bury my parents and my in-laws. When my children were young and we sat down to dinner and asked God's grace, the door bell would ring and instead of grace God sent Jean. The shouts of my children, "It's Sr. Jean!" became a frequent event. She was stopping, not to eat, but in her own words,

"I'll just pick." Each and every time she stopped we all gained something from the visit. Before leaving she would pray with us. Again, my family and I came away with more than we could possibly give.

On the morning of December 21 before saying my Liturgy of the Hours I picked up the Advent Reflections booklet. The reflection was on Luke 1:39-45. Sr. Pat Anglin spoke of three women in the Gospel: Mary, Elizabeth, and Anna. They were ordinary women who proclaimed in their own personal way that salvation history is in their midst. It was Mary's fiat that changed the world forever. Sister goes on to explain that God used these ordinary women of great faith to explain God's continual presence in our midst. Later that evening Jean died. I thought about the reading and felt Jean was an ordinary woman, faithful to the God she loved so much. Her conversations were of God and His love for us. Her ministry, Healing Through God's Word, was a testament to this. Jean worked tirelessly spreading the love she had for God and working to have each person she encountered experience the same.

In today's reflection, Sr. Mary Schneiders quotes Meister Eckhart: "What good is it if the Son of God was born to Mary... but is not born in my person, my culture, my time?" Mary asks if we really know who we are and our true identity in God, and that we have the courage and faith to accept and carry out the mission one is given. Jean certainly had faith and courage and knew her mission. No matter which way you say it, it comes back to the same thought... Jean's spirituality was deep and faith-filled. It wasn't always easy to get past the fayade of her antics. But for those of us who were fortunate enough to do this we were doubly blessed by her friendship and compassion for those in need. Her love for us will have to travel a greater distance now, but it will always be there. Already I miss my friend so much.

My last thought: Mario, my husband, said heaven will never be the same since Jean's arrival. And with Mary Ryan (my band), God surely has His hands full! But they will be preparing a place for all of us.