Responding with Her Whole Being
December 06, 2024
This article appears in the November Issue of Reflections and Connections
Sister Michaeleen Frahm has been a nurse for 62 years serving the entire spectrum of ages and life stages. For the most recent 35 years, she has served as a hospice nurse, grief counselor, and parish minister in All Saints Parish in Berlin, Wisconsin. Prior to that, however, her nursing work took her to numerous locations around the country, including work in Wisconsin, Kansas, and Kentucky.
She describes the intensive care unit (ICU) as her greatest love. During her time in Hays, Kansas, the ICU room was split in half: infants on one side and adults on the other. Sister Michaeleen recalled, “I saw people who were uncomfortable during their final days, and I thought there must be a better way to care for people at the end of life.” She read about the concept of hospice around the same time that Sisters Mary Agreda Touchett and Anne Jude Van Lanen were working to bring hospice care to St. Agnes Hospital. The three Agnesians would cross paths occasionally during their studies at conferences. Eventually, working with other staff at the hospital, Sister Michaeleen was able to open a hospice in Hays, Kansas. Sister Joyann Repp, who was one of many CSA sisters in Hays at the time, described Sister Michaeleen’s drive and ability to bring people together: “She saw a need and she responded with her whole being . . .She started so many things from scratch by putting her whole self in. I think other people saw the dedication she had and came along and were there with her . . .She worked very hard.”
Sister Michaeleen saw and responded to many needs over the years. After working to bring the hospice to serve those who were at the end of life, she brought that same energy to helping open a Level 2 Newborn Intensive Care Unit for those at the beginning of life. She took this same initiative with her to open a hospice in Monroe, Wisconsin, a few years later. In 1989, she responded to a call to serve in Berlin, where she has been until her retirement this year. Sister Michaeleen’s journey in healthcare reflects a life devoted to compassionate service and innovation, touching countless lives from the beginning to the end, and leaving a lasting legacy of dedication and care.
Standing L to R: Mary Neff, Michaeleen Frahm, Rhea Emmer, Magdala Basgall, Caryl Hartjes, Crescentia Kalscheur, Mary Michael (Annette) Herr, Mary Agreda Touchett
Seated: Estelle Kohlbeck, Lucia Herr, Irene Kohne, Grace Buckreis , Agnese Grabbe, Felicia Wasinger