Last Wednesday was the feast day of Blanche Schutrop. I had wanted to post this in memoriam on July 7th, but was having trouble posting on Word Press.
One of the first people I met at St Hubert in Chanhassen was Blanche. In my opinion, she was one of the living saints I have known in my life. Blanche was a very simple, unassuming person who packed a powerful impact on the lives of people. Born and raised in Victoria, Minnesota, she never got beyond the 8th grade. Like many people of her generation, she quit school to help support her family. She met her husband, Ivo, and moved to Chanhassen. I think the house they lived in when I was at St Hubert was the house they lived the entirety of their lives as a couple.
Blanche lived a life of service to others. She tutored many of the children who passed through St Hubert grade school. Many of these children who were struggling in education went on to higher education, I think, because of Blanche’s great compassionate service to them.
Blanche was the ex officio pastoral minister of “old” St Hubert. People would call her first, before calling either Fr Barry or Fr Steve or I, when they needed pastoral care. she organized and trained all our home communion teams who brought communion to those who were homebound. She did this for many, many years.
She also was the sacristan par excellence of St Hubert. She kept everything orderly in the sacristy and the sanctuary.
There have been 3 church buildings in the history of St Hubert. There was the old, historic church, which was used until Chanhassen grew to the point a new building needed to be built in the 1970’s. Then, the third building was built across Highway 5 when the second building could no longer hold the number of people attending Mass on the weekend.
Blanche lived across the street from the second building. She would go to daily Mass, and then spend about an hour following Mass meditating in the Eucharistic chapel where the Blessed Sacrament was reposed.
One morning, I encountered Blanche in the sacristy. She asked me, “Do you know when the most dangerous time in a marriage is?” I replied, “I don’t know, Blanche, perhaps after the first 10 years.” She responded, “No. It is when your husband is retired and he gets underfoot every minute of the day!”
Blanche, then, told me the story of going home after Mass and her daily meditation, and trying to drink a cup of coffee and eat a piece of toast in the kitchen. Her husband Ivo came in at that time to vacuum the kitchen floor (for some reason they had carpeting in the kitchen). He made her get up from the kitchen table so that he could vacuum where she was sitting. She was very put out by this. I remember the words she used to describe this. “You would think that he could wait until I was done. But, no! He took out that damn vacuum cleaner and made me get up and move!” I kidded her about how the well the peace she received from Mass and meditation that morning, aided her in this situation, admittedly, a dangerous thing to do. She just looked at me and said, “Oh, shut up!”
On these summer nights, I remember many times as I was leaving church for home, seeing Blanche and Ivo sitting in their screened in porch, drinking beer and watching a Twin’s game on their small portable television.
I learned more about pastoral ministry and day to day diaconal ministry from Blanche than I did in diaconal formation at the seminary. There are certain women who are/were natural deacons and far better deacons than I could ever be. Blanche, my wife, Ruth, and Trish Flannigan are on the top of that list. All they lacked was ordination.
God bless you St Blanche. You may not be on the Roman calendar of saints, but I know, all of heaven celebrates your feast day on July 7th.
Here is a song I wrote for Blanche and Ivo as a Christmas present in 1990. I composed a series of songs for many in the music ministry of St Hubert. The music was inspired by the episodes of the Christmas story. This is song was inspired by the story of the 12 year old Jesus being found in the Temple by his parents.
