Sister Cora Lee Middleton, SSND, who is a registered nurse, recently retired after 35 years of service and commitment to the Tutwiler Clinic at Tallahatchie General Hospital in Charleston, Mississippi. A grand sendoff was held for her on March 22. Sisters from the Central Pacific Province who are living in Chatawa, Mississippi made the trek to celebrate with Sister Cora Lee, as did Atlantic-Midwest Province Councilor Sister Deborah Cerullo.
The Tutwiler Clinic provides holistic health care to patients regardless of ability to pay. Tutwiler is located in the northwest corner of Mississippi, known as the Mississippi Delta. This region has some of the richest soil in the nation and some of the greatest economic poverty. The population in the Delta is predominantly African-American, with a growing Hispanic population. The history of segregation and racism in this area has resulted in a legacy of poverty.
During her time at Tutwiler, Sister Cora Lee worked with women religious from many different congregations. Intercongregational ministry and intercommunity living are often characteristic in such rural areas.
In an interview for Trust & Dare a few years back, Sister Cora Lee noted that two excerpts from You Are Sent expressed what her Clinic ministry captured: The belief that “the world can be changed through the transformation of persons” (YAS, C22) and the challenge “to discover unsuspected ways of sharing what we have, especially with the poor and marginalized.” (YAS, C26)
We wish Sister Cora Lee all the best as she discerns where her next call to serve will be.
