Sister Act

Trio of Sisters Keep Work, Life All in the Family

Let us stray from our standard Employee Spotlight format to share the story of three sisters who have spent more than 50 years collectively caring for the Residents of Marian Hall and, now, Mt. Assisi Place.

Anita O’Leary, Marlene Baker and Nancy Cornella each bring their own style and sass to their jobs here, blending the work ethic they inherited from their blue-collar father and the made-from-scratch charm of their homemaker mother. Dad installed intricate Terrazzo flooring, and Mom was the kind of woman who always had flour on her apron.

The sisters are self-proclaimed “North Side girls” who found their way to Mount Assisi through a connection with the late Sister Suzanne Cherney. Anita started it all, hired 31 years ago as a housekeeper at the former Marian Hall Home. Marlene came aboard in 2001, a change of pace from her previous life as a school crossing guard. Nancy followed in 2015 after many years at the former Divine Providence Hospital.

Though their shifts and workdays vary, they can usually be found together outside of work, too, shopping for family members, helping their ailing brother to downsize his home, and reminiscing about their mother’s recipes. “She was a helluva cook,” Marlene says with conviction. Anita’s grandkids, and their fourth sister, Valeria, also get some of their time.

Marlene does the cooking these days, and whatever it is that she serves up — homemade bread and butter, cherry pie, bread pudding, eggplant parmesan — Anita drops in with a takeout container, and Nancy is sure to swing by with her own plate because, as Marlene says, “I sure as heck ain’t cleaning up after her!” The younger sisters know to keep it neat because Marlene is a real stickler about finding crumbs on her freshly-swept floors!

Anita hates to miss her favorite TV shows, Marlene loves sweets, and Nancy runs on Pepsi. All three care about the people who live at Mt. Assisi Place, and it shows in the way they lovingly clean Resident rooms, do the laundry and deliver hands-on care.

Should the stars align, maybe someday they’ll get to trace their parents’ roots back to their native Italy or take one of those Viking River Cruises that look so inviting on TV. For now, they’re content to just keep up the good work.