Born to William and Theresa Guenther Anderson. She attended a one-room school in Stull, Kan., where she excelled and was a teacher’s helper. She graduated from St. Mary’s Academy, Leavenworth, and entered the Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth on Aug. 19, 1948. She professed vows as Sister Mary Wilma on Aug. 15, 1950 and later returned to her baptismal name.
From 1950 to 1965, Sister Rita Marie brought her creativity into elementary school classrooms. She discovered her calling in special education while an intern at the Kennedy Child Study Center, Saint John’s Hospital, Santa Monica, Calif. Sister returned to Kansas to serve as the in-house teacher at St. Vincent’s Home, Topeka, and continued work toward her master’s in the new field of learning disabilities.
Sister Rita Marie devoted 25 years in Topeka public schools teaching children with learning disabilities. Not ready to retire, she spent 11 more years as a learning resource and English-as-a-Second- Language teacher at Our Lady of Guadalupe School, Topeka, for which she learned Spanish. For her almost 40 years of teaching in Topeka, she received recognition as the Kansas Learning Disability Teacher of the Year and the Kansas Literacy Person of the Year. Sister Rita Marie retired to the SCL Mother House in 2008 where she was a “roving reporter.” She also continued volunteering in a kindergarten classroom. In 2014, she moved to the SCL skilled nursing facility. Her watercolors grace the walls of the new Ross Hall.
From 1950 to 1965, Sister Rita Marie brought her creativity into elementary school classrooms. She discovered her calling in special education while an intern at the Kennedy Child Study Center, Saint John’s Hospital, Santa Monica, Calif. Sister returned to Kansas to serve as the in-house teacher at St. Vincent’s Home, Topeka, and continued work toward her master’s in the new field of learning disabilities.
Sister Rita Marie devoted 25 years in Topeka public schools teaching children with learning disabilities. Not ready to retire, she spent 11 more years as a learning resource and English-as-a-Second- Language teacher at Our Lady of Guadalupe School, Topeka, for which she learned Spanish. For her almost 40 years of teaching in Topeka, she received recognition as the Kansas Learning Disability Teacher of the Year and the Kansas Literacy Person of the Year. Sister Rita Marie retired to the SCL Mother House in 2008 where she was a “roving reporter.” She also continued volunteering in a kindergarten classroom. In 2014, she moved to the SCL skilled nursing facility. Her watercolors grace the walls of the new Ross Hall.
Born to William and Theresa Guenther Anderson. She attended a one-room school in Stull, Kan., where she excelled and was a teacher’s helper. She graduated from St. Mary’s Academy, Leavenworth, and entered the Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth on Aug. 19, 1948. She professed vows as Sister Mary Wilma on Aug. 15, 1950 and later returned to her baptismal name.
From 1950 to 1965, Sister Rita Marie brought her creativity into elementary school classrooms. She discovered her calling in special education while an intern at the Kennedy Child Study Center, Saint John’s Hospital, Santa Monica, Calif. Sister returned to Kansas to serve as the in-house teacher at St. Vincent’s Home, Topeka, and continued work toward her master’s in the new field of learning disabilities.
Sister Rita Marie devoted 25 years in Topeka public schools teaching children with learning disabilities. Not ready to retire, she spent 11 more years as a learning resource and English-as-a-Second- Language teacher at Our Lady of Guadalupe School, Topeka, for which she learned Spanish. For her almost 40 years of teaching in Topeka, she received recognition as the Kansas Learning Disability Teacher of the Year and the Kansas Literacy Person of the Year. Sister Rita Marie retired to the SCL Mother House in 2008 where she was a “roving reporter.” She also continued volunteering in a kindergarten classroom. In 2014, she moved to the SCL skilled nursing facility. Her watercolors grace the walls of the new Ross Hall.
From 1950 to 1965, Sister Rita Marie brought her creativity into elementary school classrooms. She discovered her calling in special education while an intern at the Kennedy Child Study Center, Saint John’s Hospital, Santa Monica, Calif. Sister returned to Kansas to serve as the in-house teacher at St. Vincent’s Home, Topeka, and continued work toward her master’s in the new field of learning disabilities.
Sister Rita Marie devoted 25 years in Topeka public schools teaching children with learning disabilities. Not ready to retire, she spent 11 more years as a learning resource and English-as-a-Second- Language teacher at Our Lady of Guadalupe School, Topeka, for which she learned Spanish. For her almost 40 years of teaching in Topeka, she received recognition as the Kansas Learning Disability Teacher of the Year and the Kansas Literacy Person of the Year. Sister Rita Marie retired to the SCL Mother House in 2008 where she was a “roving reporter.” She also continued volunteering in a kindergarten classroom. In 2014, she moved to the SCL skilled nursing facility. Her watercolors grace the walls of the new Ross Hall.
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