Sister Catherine Durr

Loving, respected, wise

Catherine was born at home on the family farm in Nebraska City, Nebraska, on July 24, 1929, to Albert and Louise (Tordoff ) Durr, the eleventh of 12 children. After elementary school, Catherine attended the Academy, a co-ed Catholic High School in Nebraska City about 10 miles away. Due to rationing of gas during World War II, she boarded at the school. After graduation, she found work and helped out at home. Eventually, with assistance from her parents, she was able to go to college.

She earned a degree in medical technology from Creighton University. Then, she and her sister, a brand new nurse, traveled to St. Louis to find work. For a few years, Catherine worked at St. John’s Hospital, located in the city on Euclid. Deciding to enter religious life, she asked the family members’ opinion about communities. Her sister mentioned the Sisters of St. Joseph. Her priest brother suggested she meet with a Jesuit at Saint Louis University who also suggested the Sisters of St. Joseph.

Entering the Sisters of St. Joseph on September 15, 1956, she received the habit and the name Sister Anita Louise on March 19, 1957. Sister Catherine's ministry in medical technology began at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Kansas City, Missouri (1959). In 1962, she studied hospital administration at Saint Louis University. After a year of residency in health care administration at St. Elizabeth Hospital in Youngstown, Ohio (1963), S. Catherine received her master’s degree in hospital administration from Saint Louis University (1964).

That same summer, she made her final vows and was appointed administrator at St. Joseph Hospital in Kirkwood, Missouri. She was determined that there was need for assistance of the business people in the community. Judge Donald Gunn, the CSJs' community attorney, helped recruit business people for a lay advisory board, which eventually was converted to a legal board. In 1974, a new wing was added at St. Joseph's, increasing patient capacity from 210 to 330.

Four years later, S. Catherine’s service changed from administrator to hospital president. In recognition of her ministry, S. Catherine received the Woman of Achievement Award for Health Care from the St. Louis Globe Democrat (1979). After suffering a severe case of rheumatoid arthritis in 1988, she retired in 1989. The mayor of Kirkwood proclaimed August 17 as Sister Catherine Durr Day (1989).

After a break from ministry, she became the assistant to the director of development for the Sisters of St. Joseph, St. Louis Province (1991-94). From 1993 to 1997, S. Catherine also served as assistant to the president of Carondelet Health System. In addition, she served as the interim president for St. Joseph Institute for the Deaf (1992 and 2002) and was the coordinator of ongoing education for sponsorship with the Sisters of St. Joseph from 1997 to 2003. She then volunteered as she was able and moved to Nazareth Living Center in 2015.

Sister Francis Voivedich remembers S. Catherine as a fine administrator. "When she laughed, it lit up her entire face.”

Sister Carol Olson, who served with S. Catherine at St. Joseph's Hospital for 21 years, says:

Sister Maryellen Tierney shares about S. Catherine joined the staff of Carondelet Health System:

S. Catherine made it a point to make regular rounds of the departments to meet and greet the employees. No one was better than another regardless of their employment status.

Because of her many years in hospital administration, she was able to share her knowledge with the CEOs of our other 16 CSJ hospitals.

S. Catherine herself offered this advice from her long career:

The thing that I learned early on in my career was, don’t try to do it all yourself. Bring in good people who know how to handle nursing or finance or whatever and trust them with it and delegate to the people who are capable ... and don’t think you have to know it all.

By Sister Helen Oates