4 minute read
Following God on the Journey of Life: Meet Judy Virnig
Sometimes, you think you know the direction your life is going to take, and sometimes, God has something else in mind. But as many who have followed God for a long time will tell you, saying “yes” to God is always worth the adventure.
Originally from West Union, Our Lady of Lourdes parishioner Judy Virnig grew up on a dairy farm. In high school, she attended boarding school at St. Francis Convent, in Little Falls. A veritable tomboy, it took a little while to adjust to the all-girls environment. But by the end of high school, it had become home — a place that truly fostered her faith. So much so, that after graduating, she decided to discern religious life and entered the convent.
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“I went to Mass just about every morning [in high school] and that had a significant influence on me,” Judy says. “The Sisters were young and energetic, excellent teachers and great role models for us girls. Most of us grew very close to one or another of them. It was just very natural that I would try out religious life.
“It was my desert time, where I got to know Jesus, I got to know what it means to be a Catholic Christian,” she adds. “It was very precious to me, and I’m very grateful for it.”
However, after a couple years in the convent, Judy felt God calling her in a different direction. And after a time spent working for an airline in Washington, D.C., she came home to Minnesota, and fell in love with Roger Virnig, the brother of one of her dearest classmates and friends. Two years later, the couple was married.
“Our first son was born and the kids kept coming along and I said to myself, ‘Well, I probably ought to help in church, but I’ll wait until all the kids are in school,’” Judy says.
— Parishioner Judy Virnig
But it wasn’t long after that tragedy struck the young family, when their second son drowned, shortly before turning 2. However, staying close to their faith sustained them, and even became the catalyst for Judy’s early involvement in the parish.
“I was just so impressed with the women there who were serving the funeral lunch because, as I looked, I realized that almost all of them had children of their own and still, here they were, working at the funeral,” Judy says. “I thought, ‘Well, girl, you'd better get to work.’ Those women were such an influence for me, I was really moved by their presence and so they taught me a lot by being there.”
And thus, began Judy’s many years of service to our parish and community. She started by enrolling in the Christian Mothers, helping to serve funerals and decorate the church. It later turned to teaching Confirmation classes. Before long, her children were grown and Judy found herself back in school, earning a bachelor’s degree in Pastoral Ministry.
From there, she worked for over a decade as the Pastoral Minister at Our Lady of Lourdes, serving in many areas, but specifically focused on those preparing to become Catholic through the RCIA process. Following that, she spent a number of years working for the Franciscan Sisters, in their Office for Associates.
The influence of the Franciscans has also been significant in her practice of the faith over the years, and she will celebrate 35 years as a Franciscan associate — a person living Franciscan values, without being a vowed religious — next year. She remains close to friends who have spent their lives as sisters and serves on the convent liturgy committee.
Although Judy and Roger — who celebrated 52 years of marriage this year — are kept busy with their five living children, six grandchildren and two great grandchildren, they continue to be involved in the parish. Judy is a sacristan and collection counter, while Roger serves as an usher and Eucharistic Minister.
“I have come to realize that God has gifted me with charisms and talents that are not to be kept for myself,” Judy says. “They’re to be given, they’re to be shared, as the Gospel says. That’s why I do it — my gifts are needed, so I share them as much as I can.”
Today, Judy finds herself in another “desert time,” due to the COVID-19 outbreak. But just as she found God in the quiet of the convent, she finds God again in the slower pace brought about by the pandemic. Between Eucharistic Adoration, reading, gardening and spending more time in nature, she finds herself growing closer to God each day.
“If my service gets its animation from my prayer life, then I believe I’m doing what God wants me to do,” she says.
Judy hopes that other longtime members of the parish will make an effort to welcome and invite others to serve alongside themselves, and encourages those who are not yet involved to consider sharing their gifts.
“I think it is the responsibility of those who are involved to invite other people to join us,” Judy says. “But people can also speak up, call the parish office and say, ‘I’d really like to get involved, who could I talk to? Here’s what I’m interested in. Is there anywhere you could use this?’”
