Edgar and Loretta Stallings Warren, of St. Joseph, Kentucky, were delighted to welcome a baby girl, Thelma Rosina, on September 18, 1913. She joined two older sisters and three brothers. When Thelma was less than two years old, her family moved to Waterflow, New Mexico, in search of a healthier climate for her mother. In 1915, Archbishop Albert Daeger, O.F.M., who confirmed even infants and small children when he made his “rounds” throughout his huge Santa Fe diocese, confirmed Thelma.
Several other families from Daviess County had moved to the San Juan Valley near Waterflow. They named the settlement Kentucky Mesa. It was a blessing for these families when the Ursuline Sisters responded to their request to come to the Mesa to open a school and teach their children. In 1920, the Ursuline Sisters of Mount Saint Joseph opened Sacred Heart Academy in Waterflow. Thelma completed her elementary and high school education there.
The life and ministry of the Ursuline Sisters, especially Sister Mary Joseph Peterson, had a great influence upon Thelma. She loved parties, dancing and dating, yet yearned for something more. In early spring of 1935, she told Sister Mary Joseph she felt she had a religious vocation. She was surprised that her younger sister, Beatrice, had already talked with Sister about her vocation. Some of the relatives felt the two should not leave home at the same time, but the parents felt they needed each other’s companionship since they would be so far from home.
On September 8, 1935, Thelma and Beatrice entered the novitiate at Mount Saint Joseph. Both of them received the habit on August 14, 1936. Thelma received the name Sister Ancilla Marie. Beatrice became Sister Mary Edgar. Sister Ancilla Marie began her apostolate as a music teacher at St. Peter School, Stanley, Kentucky, in September 1938. Other teaching experiences in Kentucky included: Waverly, Leitchfield, and St. Francis. Sister also taught music at Seven Holy Founders in Affton, Missouri, and in San Fidel and Farmington, New Mexico. During her years at Farmington, Sister Ancilla Marie was appointed Supervisor of Music for the Diocese of Gallup.
In 1988, because of declining health, Sister Ancilla Marie asked to retire to the Motherhouse to be at home with the sisters she loved, and to have more quiet time for prayer. She took turns with the other organists accompanying the Motherhouse community assembled for prayer and the Eucharist. In early June 1993, Sister began showing signs of Alzheimer’s. The disease followed the normal course of increasing inability to communicate and to care for one’s physical needs. She was confined to the infirmary for skilled nursing care. Just past midnight on January 5, 2002, Sister Ancilla Marie died. The wake service was held Sunday evening, January 6. Father Joseph Mills, chaplain, celebrated the funeral Mass on Monday morning, January 7. Sister’s remains are buried in the convent cemetery. Her sister, Sister Mary Edgar, preceded her in death on December 23, 1997. Among her survivors was her Ursuline niece, Sister Frances Mary Wilhelm.