Ann Englert, a Dominican sister, recently celebrated 65 years in the religious order. 

In a report with The Florida Catholic, she shared that she had a steady boyfriend before she entered her vocation. As a young girl, she also had a dream to become a math teacher. 

Growing Up in 'God's Love'

As reported, Sister Englert grew up in Glendale, New York. As the youngest child, she admitted she was "a bit spoiled." 

She said the love of her parents helped her understand God's love growing up. 

As a student, Englert became interested in Math and the teachers who taught the subject. 

She said the religious sisters who were at the school were very kind to her and her classmates. 

Englert remembered that she wanted to be like her teachers when she grew up. The desire was always at the back of her mind, she said. 

Love of Teaching

The religious sister attended Barry University in Miami. She met the Adrian Dominicans and realized her desire to join the order never left her. 

At the time, she had a steady boyfriend. When he offered her his class ring, Englert told him of her plan to join the convent. 

She finished her freshman year and joined the Dominican sisters when she turned 18.

Integration, Not Segregation

Englert said she did not want to give up her dream of teaching. As a teacher, she taught at schools in Miami, St. Petersburg, and Jacksonville. 

She also served as the principal of a school in Rome, Georgia. The religious sister decided to have the school integrated. 

Most schools in the South were still under segregation when she integrated the school. She took the initiative through the inclusion of an African American first grader in the roster of enrolees.

Englert remembered telling the angry parents that the child was a parishioner of the parish school. She emphasized that the parents had every right to have their child enrolled in the school. 

She presented the parents with the question: 'What would Jesus do in this case?' Englert said that people changed their mindsets. 

Changes to Religious Life

She also told the news outlet that the Vatican also brought some changes to their religious life. Before, the nuns wore a long habit and veil. Soon, they no longer wore the habit. 

Englert observed that many people began approaching them because the nuns did not seem intimidating without the habit. 

She retired when she was 70 years old. Despite her retirement, she said that she took her ministry out in the streets. 

The Dominican sister told the news outlet that she walks around the neighborhood with her dog. The people around her know that she is a nun. 

She said her public ministry has become "more casual." Englert reflected on her religious life and said she would do it all over again. 

"The greatest blessing of my life has been my vocation," she said. 

Adrian Dominican Sisters

According to the Adrian Dominican Sisters website, the Dominican Sisters of Adrian identify themselves "as women called together to share faith and life with one another."  

They also believe that they are sent to be co-creators of God's justice and peace.

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