ST. CLAIR SHORES — For 20 years, ending last year, Immaculate Heart of Mary Sr. Evelyn Booms would call The Michigan Catholic about the annual Collection for Retired Religious, as part of her work as archdiocesan coordinator for the collection.

She would remind the newspaper that the collection was coming up, and work with a reporter to select one of the congregations of vowed religious women or men who benefits from the collection to be spotlighted for a story.

“The people know the message by now; they just need to be reminded. And I am so grateful for their contributions — over $600,000 last year from the people of the archdiocese,” Sr. Booms said.

By focusing on one or several members of a religious congregation who are still engaged in active ministry long after most people would have opted to just take it easy, the hope has been to remind readers how much the Church has benefited from the unstinting service of vowed religious still able to work, and to prompt their contributions to help congregations care for members who, through old age or infirmity, are no longer active.

Sadly, many religious congregations failed to make adequate provision for the costs of supporting elderly members in their later years. A combination of greater longevity, rising health care costs and fewer vocations made necessary the Retirement Fund for Religious.

“The people of God respond in this time of need, because so many of them have benefited in the past,” Sr. Booms said.

Her official work as collection coordinator ended last year, and with the people of the archdiocese responding so well to the collection, there is no longer a paid coordinator to promote parish participation and publicity in the diocesan newspaper.

Collection for Retired Religious The annual collection to support the Retirement Fund for Religious will be taken in churches throughout the Archdiocese of Detroit next weekend, Dec. 8-9. Donations may also be sent by mail to: Collection for Retired Religious, c/o Archdiocese of Detroit, 1234 Washington Blvd., Detroit 48226.

But Sr. Booms made that phone call to the newspaper again anyway. Because, even with some reduced duties, it is hardly as if she were retiring.

In fact, Sr. Booms, 78, is continuing with all the other activities in which she has been engaged in recent years. She still offers spiritual direction to individuals and does special programs, days of reflection and retreats for small groups.

“I used to do these things on a much grander scale, but I’m still around,” she said.

Sr. Booms also maintains some official connection to the Fund for Retired Religious, as the contact person for the IHMs.

After various ministries with the Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, she was part of a team of IHM sisters who form Kaleidoscope IHM Resources, a kind of ministry firm that took on various tasks for the Church and Church-related agencies.

After the second year of the Collection for Retired Religious yielded disappointing results, the archdiocese turn to Kaleidoscope IHM Resources to promote it. For the last few years of its existence, Sr. Booms was Kaleidoscope’s sole remaining member.

Looking back on her years as an IHM sister, she said it had been “just a marvelous experience, being associated with a number of outstanding women, and being continually challenged by our leadership to bring the Good News to a variety of people and places following the call.”