Sister Mary Ann still active after 50 years of service

Sister Mary Ann Korczynski, IWBS will celebrate her golden jubilee in consecrated life this year. She made her first profession of vows on June 4, 1966. Sister Mary Ann professed perpetual vows in her home parish of St. George in George West on Aug. 2, 1970, with Bishop Thomas Drury presiding.

Baptized Mary Ann, she was born in Corpus Christi to Joseph Steve Korczynski and Cecelia Sue Dworaczyk Korczynski. The family resided in Robstown until Mary Ann was five-years of age when they relocated to George West, where Mary Ann attended and completed her elementary and high school education.

Following graduation from George West High School, Mary Ann attended Incarnate Word College where she earned a bachelor’s degree in mathematics. She later received a Master of Natural Science with specialization in mathematics from the University of Oklahoma.

During the time she spent at Incarnate Word College, Mary Ann began to consider religious life as she prayed for vocations with the Sodality of Mary group on campus. She and her classmate, Rosemary Lichnovsky, entered the convent of the Sisters of the Incarnate Word and Blessed Sacrament on Aug. 30, 1963.

Sister Mary Ann’s  ministry included teaching at St. Patrick School and Incarnate Word Academy in Corpus Christi, and at Incarnate Word Academy and Villa Maria High School in Brownsville. From 1968–1984, she served as treasurer on school campuses in Brownsville and in Corpus Christi.
She was elected treasurer general of the Incarnate Word and Blessed Sacrament Congregation, serving in that capacity from 1984–1992 and again from 2000–2008. She was assistant general from 1992–2000, and again  from 2008–2016. She presently serves as finance director in the generalate of the congregation.

“In the sixteen years that Sister Mary Ann has generously served as assistant superior general, she has been a major support to me in carrying out the details of operation of the congregation,” Sister Michelle Marie Kuntscher, superior general, said. “For example, her work of overseeing the construction of the new motherhouse on Lipes Boulevard included countless hours of meetings, research, measurements, coordination of the various publics and explanation of  product samples and displays. 

“Sister could be seen during the afternoon break with a yardstick in hand, counting the squares in the ceiling tile in order to report the exact measurements of any room in the new building. Sister Mary Ann’s loyalty and devotion to the Incarnate Word is evident in her prayer life, and in her service and commitment to her Sisters in community.”

Sister Mary Ann is active on the board of directors and is treasurer of the Fannie Bluntzer Nason Renewal Center and is also treasurer and trustee of the Incarnate Word Academy Foundation. She has served as sister-in-charge at the motherhouse, and on commissions and committees within the congregation. Currently Sister Mary Ann is a trustee of the Guadalupe Regional Middle School in Brownsville and serves on the Diocesan Finance Council in Corpus Christi.