The Society of Saint Edmund and the Sisters of Selma
"In that part of Christ’s Body called Selma, Alabama, I held the hand of the uncomfortable Christ, that of a minister trembling with fear but bursting with courage."  Rev. Maurice Ouellet, SSE 

SSE in Selma   Sisters of Saint Joseph     1963-1965    Winter 1965     March 1965     After the March

The Society of Saint Edmund in Selma            

In 1937 the Society of Saint Edmund established a mission in Selma, Alabama.  At the invitation of the Most Rev. Thomas J. Toolen, Bishop of the Mobile-Birmingham Diocese, the Society established a church, St. Elizabeth’s, for the black population of Selma.  Their mission soon grew to include other areas around Alabama and in NC, and other works within Selma, including St. Elizabeth’s School, the Good Samaritan Hospital and practical nursing program, and the Don Bosco Boys Club.

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Sisters of Saint Joseph in Selma

In 1940 the Sisters of Saint Joseph of Rochester came to Selma and began teaching in St. Elizabeth's School.  The Sisters also assisted the Edmundites in administering the Holy Infant Inn, a home for the aged, and in running the Good Samaritan Hospital. 

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Whites did not commonly work with blacks in Selma, and some tension was present.  It was not often as strong as in 1950, when a KKK sign was nailed to the door of Saint Elizabeth's Church.  For the most part, the Edmundites and the Sisters worked quietly among the black population.  Most did not publicly participate in the growing Civil Rights movement, although some did.

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SSE in Selma   Sisters of Saint Joseph     1963-1965    Winter 1965     March 1965     After the March

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