GNTC English classes help nuns bridge language barrier
Three members of the Sisters Poor of Jesus Christ say they are learning more about the northwest Georgia area and its people thanks to classes at Georgia Northwestern Technical College’s (GNTC) Adult Education program in Cedartown.
Sisters Antonella and Neriah are natives of Brazil, and Sister Bernada is originally from Paraguay. The sisters came to the United States about 18 months ago as missionaries to the homeless and poor; GNTC Adult Education instructor Angela Freeman teaches them English as a Second Language (ESL) at GNTC’s Adult Education Learning Center in Cedartown.
“Wherever we are sent, we try to speak the language of the people,” Sister Bernada said. “It’s a necessity. It helps us to evangelize and to live our vocation if we speak the language.”
“People here are very welcoming,” Sister Antonella said. “It’s a good place to live. It’s good for our ministry and our religious life.”
Sister Antonella said their outreach extends to Rome. There are not as many homeless and poor in the region as they have encountered in their native countries or the larger cities where they have served previously.
In addition to working with the area’s homeless and poor, as well as working with the local parish, the sisters make bracelets, candles, food and rosaries as fundraisers to support their ministry.
Sister Neriah said Sister Bernada is artistic and makes many of the crafts and candles.
“We pray, work and study,” Sister Bernada said. “The most important part of our day is praying.”
“This is our second year here, and we expect to be here for five, but that could change,” Sister Antonella said. “We could stay here, go elsewhere in the United States, elsewhere in the world or return to South America.”
The sisters said they prefer taking the ESL classes in-person because they get to meet new people and learn from each other. They learn grammar rules and build their vocabulary in class.
“Sometimes we hear or see things we don’t understand,” Sister Antonella said. “By talking with people, we learn not just for our personal education but also our ministry.”
Sister Bernada said in-person classes are a great opportunity to practice what the sisters are learning without the distractions that can happen when taking class online.
“I encourage students to talk with each other so that they learn to speak English better,” Freeman said.
Sister Antonella said she has lived in both small and larger cities; Cedartown is a lot like her hometown. Sisters Bernada and Neriah said they are from rural areas.
Sisters Antonella and Bernada have been nuns for nearly eight years and were novitiates (novice nuns) together before coming to the United States. Sister Neriah has been a nun for 12 years, they explained.
They live in a house in downtown Cedartown, where they cook, clean and perform other housekeeping chores, Sister Neriah said. The sisters appreciate labor-saving machines, like dishwashers, that make living in America more convenient.
“People here are very independent in everything,” Sister Antonella said. “They go to the gas station and grocery store themselves to get their purchases. In Brazil other people do it for you.”
The sisters said they enjoy Cedartown and the weather in the South. The summers resemble those in their native countries, but the winters are colder here.
“We had never seen snow (firsthand) until January 2023 when were in Kansas,” Sister Neriah said. While the sisters were enchanted with the snow, Sister Bernada said she was soon ready to return to the South.
The sisters said their change of seasons is also different in the Southern Hemisphere. They marveled that plants die after the first frost and come back in the spring in the South.
Georgia Northwestern Technical College provides quality workforce education to the citizens of northwest Georgia. Students have the opportunity to earn an associate degree, diploma or a certificate in aviation, business, health, industrial or public service career paths. This past year, 11,601 people benefited from GNTC’s credit and noncredit programs. GNTC has an annual credit enrollment of 8,071 students and an additional enrollment of 3,530 people through adult education, continuing education, business and industry training and Georgia Quick Start. GNTC is a unit of the Technical College System of Georgia and an Equal Opportunity Institution.
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