Mary Janette, the oldest of seven children of James Nicholas and Mary Irene Boone Bowling, was born October 30, 1917, in New Haven, Ky. On November 3, 1917, she began her faith journey with baptism at St. Catherine Church. The family’s strong beliefs came from ancestors Thomas and Anna Bowling who were among the first permanent Catholic settlement at Pottinger’s Creek. Janette’s formal education began at Boones Mill School. She attended high school at St. Ann, Howardstown, and St. Catherine, New Haven.
On September 8, 1935, Janette, along with six other young women, entered the novitiate at Mount Saint Joseph. On August 14, 1936, she was invested with the Ursuline habit and received the name Sister Mary Janette.
Sister Janette’s early assignments as classroom teacher were in Vine Grove, Sorgho, and Fredericktown, Ky. In 1952, she was missioned to Plattsmouth, Neb., as teaching-principal and superior for six years. She then spent four years at Raywick, Ky. In 1962, she was appointed assistant director of novices for 11 years. Leaving that position, she returned to Nebraska and taught at Lourdes High School in Nebraska City for one year. She came back to Kentucky and served as principal at St. Pius X School in Owensboro, her last teaching assignment in elementary and high school classrooms.
In 1968, Sister Janette began a new ministry as Director of Religious Education at Fort Knox, Ky. She served there 16 years. In addition to her duties at Fort Knox during this time, she presented teacher-training workshops for religious education on several military posts, i.e., Fort Bragg, N.C.; Fort Sheridan, Ill.; Fort Polk, La.; Fort Rucker, Ala.; Fort Leonard Wood, Mo.; Fort Bliss, Texas, and Fort Hamilton, N.Y. Sister traveled to 11 Army posts in central Germany presenting religious education workshops. She received numerous citations for outstanding service.
Sister Janette retired from Civil Service at Fort Knox in 1984. She was appointed Director of Religious Education at St. Edward Parish, Jeffersontown, Ky., until June 15, 1997. She spent a few months at St. Angela Home in Louisville before having heart surgery.
Sister Janette came to the Motherhouse in October 1997. Though weakened from surgery, she was able to participate in the daily routine of prayer and meals. She was hospitalized briefly in late September 2001. She died Monday, October 8, 2001, in the Motherhouse infirmary. The wake service was held in the chapel on Tuesday evening, followed by the funeral services on Wednesday, October 10, 2001. Msgr. Robert Bowling, Sister’s brother, Father Joseph Mills, chaplain, and Father Conrad Runnebaum, SFE, celebrated the funeral Mass. Sister’s remains are buried in the convent cemetery.