Monica Fenhaus
Celebrating 35 Years!
By Russ Mancl
Thirty five years ago in September, Monica Fenhaus began working with the Holy Cross Sisters. Sister Mary Thomas Reichl, who was Provincial at the time, was looking for someone to be a receptionist and do some typing. Monica’s aunt, Violet Woller, was working for the sisters as a housekeeper and was asked if she knew of someone who could fill that position. And the rest, as they say, is history. Monica was asked to help out when Sister Ambrosia Maria became ill and later took bookkeeping and accounting classes. Today Monica serves as Controller for the Holy Cross Sisters.
In 35 years a lot has changed. “I started doing all the book work by hand, either typing or writing. All the checks to pay bills were typed, and then hand written into a big ledger book, which I had to then manually add up with a calculator. I was the first person in the convent to get a computer, the DOS days. I remember it was an IBM, and we had to have someone from the High School come and show me how to use it and the programs,” Monica said.
Monica’s work environment has also changed throughout the 35 years: working in Holy Cross Convent, today known as Bell Tower Residence, to Riverside Avenue, to Scott Mansion on Center Avenue, to the current location on O’ Day Street. “The sisters are great to work for. Every three years you could have a new provincial and each one wants things done differently, so in that way it keeps me from getting too bored,” Monica said. As far as the 35 years of changes on Holy Cross Hill, Monica said, “It must be all in God’s plan.”