Sister Patricia Gootee
Sister Patricia (Pat) Gootee, a member of the Medical Mission Sisters, celebrates her 60th Jubilee on Aug. 15.
Sister Pat, currently serving in Peru, has roots in the Diocese of Evansville. She was once a parishioner of Precious Blood Parish in Jasper, Ind., and she attended St. John High School in Loogootee, graduating in 1951.
Immediately following graduation, she joined the Medical Mission Sisters and began nursing studies. Her first mission was to Maracaibo, Venezuela, where she worked in a hospital for five years. Following her service in Venezuela, she earned a master’s degree in Nursing from the University of Pennsylvania. She then returned to Venezuela to teach nursing.
Sister Pat moved to Peru in 1973 and became the first Medical Mission Sister to serve on the South American continent. She worked in the Andes Mountains for six years as a nurse and a member of a pastoral team. In 1979, she moved to Arequipa, Peru, where she continues to serve with two other Medical Mission Sisters today. There are an additional seven sisters who now work in another part of Peru.
During her time in Peru, Sister Pat has been involved in a variety of ministries and programs for and with the people of Arequipa. In the health field, she has offered basic health care and has in turn trained local caregivers to do the same. She also started the Anna Dengel Center, which serves preschool children and trains the children’s mothers in various marketable skills. She also helped found the Community of Families and Comprehensive Rehabilitation. COFARI is an outreach program to children with disabilities and their families.
Austrian-born doctor Anna Dengel founded the Medical Mission Sisters in 1925. The order focuses on the practice of medicine, surgery, and obstetrics. These healing practices, combined with the sisters’ collective desire for social justice in the world today, benefit many people internationally. There are approximately 600 sisters and 100 associate members serving in 17 countries on five continents around the world.
