The Sisters of Joan of Arc, a presence in the monastery kitchen for 77 years, have prepared their last official meal for the monks.

While the convent on campus remains home for five of the seven sisters, on Nov. 2, Sr. Louise Levesque and Sr. Melanie Fournier moved to the mother house in Sillery, Quebec.

Sisters Therese Levesque, Noella Thibeault, Madeleine Breault, Pauline Marcoux and Laurette Moreau remain on campus.

The transition from the kitchen is bittersweet, says Sr. Laurette, but necessary due to the age and health of the sisters. Membership peaked in the 1950s and 60s with 28 sisters on campus.

While the familial connection with the monks will remain a staple of their everyday lives, Sr. Laurette will miss the daily ritual of meal preparation. Among her favorites are the Thanksgiving dinners with six turkeys plus all the fixings, Easter hams, chicken cordon bleu, crepes, soufflés, and of course the all-time favorite, eclairs. "Oh, we had good parties. We spoiled those monks," she said. "My heart is in the kitchen, has been for 17 years."

She won’t have to go far now to continue doing what she loves. Thanks to the physical plant staff, the sisters now have a modern kitchen in the JOA convent in which to prepare their own meals.

This is by no means full retirement for the five who remain on campus. "We will continue doing the laundry and sewing the habits," says Sr. Laurette, noting that each habit is custom made for the monks. College President, Fr. Jonathan DeFelice, O.S.B., joked that "custom made" means the sisters know better than anyone who has been sticking to their diets or sneaking extra dessert.

A full-time cook has helped ease the transition by assisting in the kitchen over the last several years. Meanwhile the monastery plans to hire a chef supervisor to manage the kitchen and plan the menus.

On Nov. 1, the Solemnity of All Saints, the sisters and the monks shared vespers in French and English. They were joined for the occasion by Mother General Sr. Pauline Talbot, S.J.A., from Quebec.

After expressing his thanks on behalf of all the monks, Abbot Matthew recalled the words of the monastery’s first abbot, Bertrand Dolan, O.S.B., who brought the sisters to Saint Anselm in 1928. "Of the many decisions I have made in my long years as abbot, I can say that the most important one was to invite the Sisters of Joan of Arc to Saint Anselm."

"Abbot Bertrand said this not simply because of the expertise the sisters brought to the kitchen and their other areas of service," said Abbot Matthew, "but more so because of their extraordinary example of prayer and faithfulness to the Lord, which they manifest among us…Our monastic community will be forever indebted to the sisters in ways that could never be expressed in words."

A plaque marking their service will be installed at the entrance to the monastic refectory as a grateful reminder of their permanent place in history.

"We’re like brothers and sisters," says Sr. Laurette. "We’ll be together no matter what."