By KATIE LEFEBVRE, Globe staff reporter
February 24, 2005

One parishioner in the Diocese of Sioux City served as a long-time sacristan at Blessed Sacrament Parish in Sioux City.

Mae Barry served as sacristan at Blessed Sacrament for about 20 years from the time she retired until about a week before she recently moved into the Northern Hills Retirement Apartments in Sioux City.

Barry cleaned in the sacristy and within the church as well as cleaning the altar server cassocks and altar linens. She dusted, vacuumed and got everything straightened out in the church every Friday. She would take the altar linens home to wash and iron them and return to the church on Saturday morning with them in a plastic bag.

"I like to keep God's house clean," said Barry. "I think we should all take a hand in it. Everybody should do something and then it isn't so much work."

As she cleaned and worked in the church, she commented that she just knew God was with her. Ann Schultz, liturgist at Blessed Sacrament, explained that Barry would go to the church to clean in all sorts of weather. She would travel through snow drifts and whatever else to get to the church.

According to Barry's daughter, Lynn Uhl, a few years ago Barry was in the hospital and worried about who was going to clean the church and the linens.

"I knew I was supposed to do them. It was my job," said Barry.

Barry has been a parishioner at Blessed Sacrament for 56 years and has helped with several activities along with being a sacristan for so long. She would make rolls and pies for parish dinners and bake sales. Not only did she bake for the parish dinners, she helped serve them. She was part of the adult choir as well.

"Everything they had, I joined," said Barry. "I was a joiner. I didn't say no to anything."

Uhl added that Barry was known for her rolls and was asked to make them for several events at the church. Uhl also commented that Barry used to cut the priests' hair when they asked her to. The priests would sit in a chair in her kitchen with a towel wrapped around their neck, and she would cut their hair.

"When I moved here they just had the old house, when Msgr. Flanagan was there," said Barry. "I watched this church come up from the ground up. There have been a lot of changes."

Barry noted that the priests used to live at the parish until there was a fire and they moved and bought a house. Where the rectory used to be is where the parish center is currently.

"It was a family affair from the very beginning," said Uhl. She added that her father was head usher for several years and the rest of the family helped out by delivering the pies or rolls for their mother.