Sister Laurette Bellamy

Reading: Colossians 3:12

“Since God chose you to be the holy people whom God loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. You must make allowance for other people’s faults and forgive the person who offends you. Remember God forgave you, so you must forgive others. And the most important piece of clothing you must wear is love.”

The Word of God.

The students at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College called Sister Laurette, “Sister Gucci,” because of the fashionable way in which she always dressed. But if they or we judge by appearance only, they and we miss the many gifts, talents and virtues that this remarkable woman possessed through her 96 years. I hope to reveal some of them in this commentary, said Sister Ann Casper in her commentary for Sister Laurette Bellamy, who passed away on Friday, February 9, 2024, at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods. She was 96 years old and had been a Sister of Providence for 76 years.

Sister Ann continued: Yvonne Marie Bellamy was born on June 27, 1927, to Harold and Loretta Burke Bellamy in Chicago. She had one sibling, Carol, who preceded her in death. She is survived by her brother-in-law, Stephen, a niece and nephew and several cousins. Her dear friend Adrienne Krajewska Bates-Brown also grieves her passing, as does husband Steve and their children.

Laurette completed elementary school at St. Mel in Chicago and went on to Providence High School, graduating in 1945. She entered the Congregation three years later in February, 1948. Sister Dorothy Gartland, her dear friend since those years, recounted how they came to the novitiate together on the train. Dorothy’s forehead-pin curls peeked from beneath her babushka. Quite a contrast to Laurette’s naturally curly hair and fur coat! They admitted not liking each other at first, but when they got off the train, one commented to the other, “We’d better be friends or we’re sunk.” And so, that decision and their friendship lasted another 75 years, with no regrets.

Sister Laurette’s first profession of vows was on Aug. 15, 1950, and her perpetual vows on that same date in 1955. She earned a bachelor’s degree in music from Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College and a master’s degree in music from Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. Several years later, she was awarded a PhD in Music Theory from Indiana University.

Except for the period when she studied in Washington, D.C., her 60 years of music ministry were spent entirely in the state of Indiana and included the cities of Jasper, where she taught at St. Joseph’s; Indianapolis at Ladywood School; Indiana University in Bloomington and her nearly 43 years at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College.

At SMWC, her teaching expertise was piano and music theory. She soon rose to Professor, Chair of the Music Department and then Chair of the Department of Visual and Performing Arts. She taught for several years in their Master of Arts in Music Therapy program, a program she was instrumental in starting at the college many years before.

Her brief years at Washington proved beneficial for the Sisters of Providence for Sister Suzanne Dailey attributes her vocation to Laurette’s presence there and God’s Providence in bringing them together. Her story: “In 1951, when I was 14 years old, my parents, wanting me in a Catholic school, contacted the principal at Immaculata High School in Washington, D.C. Even though the new incoming freshmen class was full, my parents talked the principal into taking me. The first day of class I rode the military bus with high-school age dependents (children) from Fort Myers, Virginia, to Woodrow Wilson High School which was about a block and a half from Immaculata. The driver stopped at Immaculata and let me out on the street. I went to the only door I saw on the imposing building up a hill and rang the doorbell.

“The person who answered the door was very upset by my presence there and my ‘attempt’ to come into the building using a door that was not for students. I was startled by her angry approach. She went on and on. I considered running down the street and joining the others from the base at the public high school.

“At that moment, two young Sisters of Providence approached. Both caught on right away what was happening and they intervened. They took me into the building, showed me around, pointed out the student entrance and then got me to where I belonged. Those two SPs were Sisters Laurette and Jeanne Knoerle. I told them many times afterwards that they were responsible for my staying at Immaculata and for all that led to.”

While at the Woods, Laurette lived at the Woodland Inn where Sister Jean Fuqua recalled that she was the life of any and all parties, of which there were many. Sister Kak Desautels recalls that although Laurette spent many days teaching in Bloomington each week, when she was there at the Inn, she was there, totally present to her sisters. Her SMWC colleague and close friend, Marian Krajewska, whom she had come to know at IU, also lived at the Inn the days she taught at SMWC. The two of them shared lots of music and memories! Marian brought her children to visit when they were very small. Stephen as a toddler dressed in a suit and tie. Adrienne as a babe in arms. Laurette was always Rettie to the children and many of her friends today know her by that name.

Adrienne and her brother Steve remember doing all sorts of fun things with Rettie, especially several sports in which Laurette excelled: Swimming, bowling, tennis, water ballet, fencing and golf. They were also allowed to stay up to watch late night TV with her: Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy, of course, along with Dallas and Falcon Crest. In her later years and to the present, Laurette lived with Adrienne and her family who welcomed her. They were both very involved in the Providence Associates, being responsible for nine or 10 women becoming associates at the parish, St. Francis and Clare. Adrienne always took Laurette to her SP Local Government Unit meetings and they were both involved in the PA South Side Circle as well as several parish groups: A Bunco group, adoration times, women’s club dinners and the Joy Club. Laurette wasn’t much for using a cane or a rollator, but ended up using both at different times. She called her cane, Elsie and her rollator, Hector. She was also a connoisseur of chocolate, as long as it was Russell Stover’s milk chocolate.

I believe it was at one of those Inn parties that I heard Laurette recount this story, as only Laurette could do! The facts are fuzzy and I won’t do justice to them, but the story bears repeating. When Laurette went to a music convention one winter in Washington, D.C., at which she was the early-morning keynote speaker, she was hurrying to the hotel and did not notice that some landscaping was being done along the front sidewalk. She soon found herself in a deep hole awaiting a young sapling! Eventually, passers-by heard her plea for help and with their help, she struggled upward. She was a muddy mess, but undeterred, headed for the ladies room, where she cleaned the mud off her heels and clothing and proceeded to the stage to deliver the keynote address, with utmost calm and coolness.

In 1993, Laurette received the SMWC Alumnae Leadership Award. It was noted that she served on every major committee of the Faculty Assembly, instituted the Music Camps, served on the Terre Haute Symphony Board, the Terre Haute Composers’ Society and the grants committee of the Indiana Arts Commission.

On the occasion of her Golden Jubilee in 1998, her response to “sharing her most memorable SP moments” was this: “The daily, consistent SP moments continue to be the best ever for me and form the very fabric of my happy and blessed life.”

Sister Lisa Stallings, a musician colleague, shared this about Laurette: “We all know that Laurette had a great mind and was a brilliant musician. It always seemed to me that she held those gifts loosely, though, as if they were quite ordinary. I think that could be why she could put them to use for productions like Prinderella and the Cince … And why she could interact with us lesser musical and intellectual lights as though we were peers.”

Sister Carol Nolan noted that Laurette was an examiner for the National Association of Schools of Music. “She always tried to help schools that were having difficulties passing the exam. Many teachers felt they should never leave their students and classrooms; she encouraged them to get out and attend conferences and workshops, refreshing their own professional lives. She practiced what she preached; both she and I attended musicology and theory events. This did more than I can say for my breadth of knowledge and confidence.”

Many other descriptors were used by those who were taught by Laurette as well as those with whom she taught: “A warm and supporting colleague; an air of personal elegance; a wit, kindness and knowledge unmatched; one who challenged me personally and musically; she had strong words for me, followed by warm and encouraging love; she was a force!”

Current Dean of the Division of Arts and Social Sciences, and Director of the Master of Arts in Music Therapy Tracy Richardson, shared this and I quote: “I can’t even begin to say all that Sister Laurette Bellamy taught me and so many others. Of course, she taught our music theory classes … and we all remember singing ‘Glory to God, Glory’ at the beginning of every class! But much of her ‘teaching’ was outside the classroom. It was in her office, or the hallway, or in a phone call where she would very lovingly, yet in a matter-of-fact manner, tell you what you needed (not necessarily what you wanted) to hear. It often started with, ‘Listen, honey …’

“She was there at several major crossroads in my life. She convinced me to stay in college when I wanted to quit. She called me at home and said something like, ‘Listen, honey, I know you think this is best for you, but it is not!’ I respected her so much that I followed her advice and stayed in school.

“She convinced me to interview for a particular job (which led to meeting my husband). Several years later, she asked me to return to the Woods to teach music therapy for ‘one semester’ (and that ‘one semester’ has turned into 29 years).

“What is incredible about this story is not that she did this for me; she had a similar, life-changing impact on many students over the years by providing the wisdom and guidance they needed at just the right time.”

As Tracy mentioned, Sister Laurette always began her classes with students singing “Glory to God.” I thought that practice would be an appropriate way to end this commentary by indeed giving glory to God for the life and presence among us of this one-of-a-kind woman, so together: (sing) Glory to God.

Funeral services for Sister Laurette took place on Monday, Feb. 26, and Tuesday, Feb. 27, in the Church of the Immaculate Conception at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods.

Memorial contributions may be made in honor of Sister Laurette to the Sisters of Providence of Saint Mary-of-the-Woods.

We welcome you to share your memories of Sister Laurette in the comment section below.

Sister Laurette Bellamy

Complete Ministry

In Indiana: Teacher, Ladywood, Indianapolis (1950-52); Teacher, Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College, Saint Mary-of-the-Woods (1952-53); Teacher, Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College, Saint Mary-of-the-Woods (1955-57); Teacher, Ladywood, Indianapolis (1957-64); Teacher, Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College, Saint Mary-of-the-Woods (1968-71); Teacher, Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College, Saint Mary-of-the-Woods (1972-79); Professor/Chair, Music Department, Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College, Saint Mary-of-the-Woods (1979-90); Professor/Chair, Department of Visual and Performing Arts, Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College, Saint Mary-of-the-Woods (1990-92); Professor/Music Area Coordinator, Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College, Saint Mary-of-the-Woods (1992-2003); WED Adjunct Faculty, Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College, Saint Mary-of-the-Woods (2003-10); Volunteer, St. Ann Clinic, Terre Haute (2005-11); Volunteer, St. Vincent DePaul, Bloomington (2006-16); Nursing Home Visitor, St. Charles Borromeo, Bloomington (2013-14); Parish Volunteer, Saints Francis and Clare Parish, Greenwood (2016-23).