Sister Lois Jean Jensik, OSB, was born in Chicago on March 6, 1936, to Louis Jensik and Barbara Pipek Jensik. Their family parish affiliation at that time was with St. Ludmilla Parish in Chicago where she was baptized on March 22, 1936. The family, however, became members of Our Lady of the Mount Parish in Cicero by the time she was old enough to go to school. They would live there until she completed her eight years of elementary education and received the sacrament of confirmation which happened in October of 1945.

One of the fond memories of her time at Our Lady of the Mount School was when at the beginning of each school year she and her cousin, Mary Ann, would watch the Sisters coming to Mass on Sundays to see which Sisters came back from Lisle, and hopefully thinking there would be some new ones among them too; then trying to figure out which Sister would be their teacher that year. Her greatest joy during those school years, however, was when she was nine years old, her brother John was born. She just couldn’t wait to announce to her classmates the good news of becoming a big sister. She would be able now to count on John to grow up with her.

Lois Jean first attended Nazareth Academy in La Grange for high school as again the family by then moved to the western suburb of Westmont where they became members of Holy Trinity Parish. However, still holding the memory of her visit in Lisle with the Benedictine Sisters she had previously had, she was drawn to go to Sacred Heart Academy for her two, final high school years. With her parents blessing, she became a student at Sacred Heart Academy in Lisle where she was able to stay as a boarder. This experience became her preparing link in joining the Benedictine Sisters at Sacred Heart Convent. (Some years later the name was changed to Sacred Heart Monastery.)

When Lois Jean graduated from Sacred Heart Academy in 1953, she was 18 years old and immediately made plans to become a postulant at Sacred Heart. As her father was driving her to the convent he pulled off the road to give her his fatherly advice. He spoke words similar to these: “Lois, this is your future home and once you enter you are there for life. You will need to live there in good times and in tough times. The important thing is that you keep your commitment.” For the rest of her life, she felt these words were very perceptive and she never forgot them, carrying them in her mind and heart, often reflecting on them and being grateful for her Dad’s wisdom. When she wavered, she remembered what he meant. His words were keeping her on the right track no matter how seriously tempted she was to take a different road.

Once she went through both postulancy and the novitiate years by 1955, she was ready for her triannual vows of Stability, Conversion of Life and Obedience and later in 1958 she made these vows for life. This meant her primary training made her ready for service. Her prioress then sent her to SS. Cyril and Methodius School in Joliet to accompany the teaching Sisters as an observer and aid in their classrooms. After two years there, and for her years that followed she was sent to St. Benedict’s Home for the Aged in Niles, Our Lady of Lourdes School in Chicago and then back to Sacred Heart in Lisle. This gave her an education in experiences with elderly people, children of the white and black races and a feeling of being a responsible adult. She as well, through the years, took summer credit courses 2 to sharpen her knowledge for her committed assignments. Coming back from the missions to Sacred Heart she became an Aid at the Montessori School, a new teaching facility for primary students when the Academy had closed, along with doing other miscellaneous activities such as hand crafts especially embroidery. Her joy was even brighter when, along with Sister Paula, one of her miscellaneous duties was to take care of a baby girl, later a little boy and still later a physically disabled, older boy while their Moms went to work. In these positions, she really thrived as she took care of Michelle, then Christian, and lastly Ernie. These three children were precious to her. The truth is, they never forgot her even in their own adulthood to this very day. They communicated with her and Sister Lois Jean never forgot them either. She was grateful for each one of them and treasured them as her own.

In her retirement years, Lois Jean accepted her role as the door keeper or concierge which was a job that fit her well. She loved to greet people, connect them with who they came to see and remembered their names for the future. This service at the front desk, answering the phone and welcoming people was very important since at that time the Sisters did not have private phones. Communicating messages well-delivered was vital and the Sisters appreciated her responsible service.

As a Benedictine community member, Sister Lois Jean loved the monastic life, namely, the liturgy of the Divine Office, the Eucharist, and her monastic vows. She felt privileged to have spent most of her years at the motherhouse where the liturgy was observed in its fullness; Gregorian Chant and all. Her love of the beautiful chapel brought her often to watch what the sacristans, Sisters Regis and Gemma were doing to prepare for Mass treating the sacred vessels with reverence. Later, when the role of sacristan became her responsibility for several years, she felt privileged to work so close in God’s sacramental presence. She often marveled how the statue’s image of the Sacred Heart of Jesus on the high altar, with his outstretched arms of welcome, beckoned her to this community when she was a young student.

She was as well very mindful of the early Sisters who sacrificed their lives to contribute to the flourishing years of our community’s monastic life. How God must have been blessing them in their selfless ways of service in those founding, impoverished years and how lovingly they provided for us. She was full of amazement of them knowing they experienced some monumental hardships but wanted to provide an easier, beautiful, and more enjoyable life for us which we now have. With her interest in the Sisters’ community history and her love to read biographies, she became a developed storyteller sometimes relating the plot even in a more exciting way to emphasize a comical incident allowing the listeners to laugh, promoting her ability to entertain them.

Awaiting to celebrate her Jubilee of 70 years as a vowed Benedictine Sister with her family and friends scheduled for October 2025, unexpectedly her health began to decline after May of 2025, needing Hospice Care. Then on the morning of July 23^rd, she completed her earthly journey as she breathed her last breath as the Sisters were assembling for morning prayer. It was a loving surrender of peace with God forever where she will celebrate the joyous occasion of her 70 Year Jubilee in the splendor of Heaven along with the Angelic Chorus. May God be praised for the gift of her life!

Sister Lois Jean grew up with her brother, John, and their parents Barbara and Louis, in Cicero, Illinois. Some of her earliest childhood memories include feeling great joy when the Benedictine Sisters, would arrive at the beginning of each new school year at Holy Mount Parish. She recalls, too, her cousin instructing her to be nice to the ‘half Sisters’ (those who did not wear a ring and were in training) or they might leave the convent.

Sister Lois Jean recalls warmly how kind the priests were to the children. They would flood the play yard in the winter so the children could skate and take them to a toboggan hill. When she was 8 or 9 years old, Sister Lois Jean recalls seeing the movie “The Little Flower” and it was then that she told her mother she wanted to enter the convent. She was a bit of a character, too! She would put a scarf on her head and pretend to be a Sister and then she would explain to her mother that she could not work or help with chores because she had to pray!

When she was 16, and on the occasion of one of the Benedictine Sisters’ 50th Jubilee, Sister Lois Jean first came to see Sacred Heart Chapel. She found the monastery to be so peaceful and she felt God was calling her. She remembers being drawn to the Statue of the Sacred Heart with his arms outstretched in welcome. Her mother counseled her to wait two years and attend Sacred Heart Academy to be sure she could live away from home and in community. When she was 18, her father drove her to the monastery. On the way, he pulled the car over and told her, “Lois, this is your future home. Once you enter, you are there for life. You will need to live through tough times and keep your commitment. She took her perpetual vows in 1958.

Sister Lois Jean taught for several years and has since then helped in many areas of monastery life: laundry, working in the fields, sewing. Then she found her true calling – caring for babies and young children of families who needed daycare and asked the Sisters to help. Sister Lois Jean remembers fondly, the youngsters she cared for, especially her good friend Ernie Stark who spent time at the monastery as a young man while his mother worked.

These days you will find Sister Lois Jean cheerfully staffing the monastery reception desk. Too, she has responsibilities for preparing the chapel for Mass. Her hobbies include embroidery and playing Sodoku. She loves to watch animal shows and is a Jeopardy fan. She welcomes a return to the quiet, private monastery environment upon completion of the renovation work.