Sister Maria Joselinde

Sister Maria Joselinde                  ND 4791                  PDF Download

Regina Krösmann

Maria Regina Province, Coesfeld, Germany

Date and Place of Birth:                 11 February 1931         Alstätte, Kr. Ahaus
Date and Place of Profession:      27 February 1957         Coesfeld
Date and Place of Death:              17 November 2023      Coesfeld
Date and Place of Funeral:           22 November 2023      Coesfeld, Convent Cemetery

„Lord, guide me, use me, consume me.“

Regina Krösmann was the oldest of the seven children born to Josef and Maria Krösmann, née Herkur- Orthaus. From 1937 to 1945, she attended the catholic basic primary and secondary school in Alstätte; then she stayed at home for five years to help her mother with the household. The sudden death of her 48-year-old father in 1949 was a decisive blow for the family. Regina attended the local sewing school, kept a doctor’s office in order, and finally became a ward assistant in the hospital in Alstätte. In this eventful time, her wish to become a religious sister took on more and more shape.

On 12 April 1955, she started her novitiate in Coesfeld and received the name Sister Maria Joselinde. She has always venerated St. Josef, her patron. He was her special helper and confidant. In 1957, she took her first vows and in 1962 her final vows in our motherhouse in Rome.

Sr. M. Joselinde became a responsible nurse. In March 1974, she passed her exam at St. Josef Hospital in Cloppenburg with an overall grade of “good”.

Wangerooge Haus Meeresstern, Wilhelmshaven, Vechta, Gescher, Nottuln and finally Coesfeld were stations during her long religious life. Those who knew Sr. M. Joselinde immediately associated her with Wangerooge. The island and its inhabitants and her ministry in the hospital of the island were the center of her life, and finally the good and trustful cooperation with our Sister Maria Anselma, who has long since passed away.

When the hospital of the island had to be closed, she was issued the following certificate: “Sr. M. Joselinde has worked independently, she has worked in the laboratory and assisted with surgeries, she performed anaesthesia and worked in the outpatient clinic, she did some of the x-rays herself: in a nutshell, there is no area that she did not master and she was always eager to acquire and internalise new knowledge.” Sister Maria Anselma also attested her great skill and a good grasp of things, enjoyment of nursing care, prudence and diligence in keeping the ward tidy and clean, constant day and night readiness for all tasks assigned to her.

In 1989, Sr. M. Joselinde moved to Gescher, nearer to her hometown. After the closure of the community there, she moved to Nottuln, where she stayed until 2015 and took care of the reception. Again and again, she talked about Wangerooge, as if she had left it only recently.

Sister Maria Joselinde spent her well-deserved retirement at Kloster Annenthal. During the last years she was in the nursing ward. There she was lovingly taken care of by our sisters and the employees in care and social services.

“Lord, guide me, use me, and consume me“ was the motto of her life. She has allowed herself to be used in the service of the sick. In the early hours of 17 November, she gave her life back to the one she had given herself to all her life.