Costa Mesa church turns the page on tragedy, dedicating a new library to a sister’s legacy
Members of Saint Joachim Catholic Church convened Friday in a two-bedroom house near the Costa Mesa church grounds to celebrate its recent transformation into a school learning center and to honor the legacy of its former occupant and namesake.
Sr. Kathleen Marie Pughe dedicated her life to the church, spending more than 70 years in service with the Sisters of Saint Joseph of Orange.
An adored figure in Catholic education for half a century, she served as principal for St. Joseph School in Santa Ana, St. Mary’s in Fullerton, Orange’s Holy Family School and Our Lady of Guadalupe in La Habra.
Pughe came to Saint Joachim School in 2006 and stayed there until her retirement 13 years later. She continued to live in the 900-square-foot residence, serving as a friend and mentor to countless parishioners and the many children who attended the school.
Her life was cut short by a tragic car accident that occurred on the evening of March 31, 2022, as the sister drove home from a dinner with friends. Although she lived to age 89, her death came as a shock to those in the community.
Bishop Kevin Vann of the Diocese of Orange presided over Friday’s dedication, blessing the space and the life of the woman who made it a cornerstone of the local church.
“Bless this home with its books and belongings. It stores the knowledge of ages and the memories of Sister Kathleen Marie for all of us,” he began. “Grant that all who come here may be enlightened by the spirit of truth, so that they may know it and that the truth shall set them free.”
Fullerton resident Silvia Jenn, who came to Friday’s dedication with 28-year-old son Gregory, found herself welling up with tears as she stood inside Pughe’s former dwelling.
“She was my spiritual adviser,” Jenn recalled. “She was a close, dear friend, always checking up on us. She attended every funeral of every [student] who ever passed away — that’s the kind of heart she had. There will never be another Sister Kathleen.”
In the year or so following her death, the empty house where Pughe resided remained a stark reminder of her passing. That’s when Saint Joachim leaders put their heads together and came up with a solution.
They ultimately decided to relocate the school library into the former home, turning it into the Sister Kathleen Marie Learning Center, with different areas for fiction, research and young readers. A lush, green backyard provided an ideal spot for use by both children and adults, according to current Principal Kelly Botto.
“We didn’t have an outdoor gathering area. Beyond the lunch tables and the field, there wasn’t really a quiet space,” she said. “Now the backyard can be a quiet learning space.”
Moving the library out of the early childhood center at the school freed up room, allowing Saint Joachim to formally expand its preschool offerings, Botto added. Now, kindergarten and pre-kindergarten classes can accommodate 25 students per class, while the preschool classes can enroll up to 24 kids.
Librarian Victoria Burnett, who worked with Botto and Senior Priest Fr. Mike Hanifin to reconfigure Pughe’s residence into a library capable of accommodating 14,227 books and reading areas, said St. Joachim is one of only a handful of schools that still employs a librarian.
“Reading is not just recreation, it’s intentional,” said Burnett, an oral storyteller as well as a book lover. “We want students to know if you read, you can go anywhere. I’m hoping our students can get out of their bubbles or the microscopic worlds they’re living in and expand their thinking.”
The transition — and the undeniable impact it will have on the school and the larger Saint Joachim community — is something those who knew and loved Pughe are absolutely certain the sister would have loved.
“I think she is smiling down and is so happy that this place is used for the students, for this to be a second home for them, because she really had a heart for the kids,” Botto said.
Jenn agrees.
“She would love this,” she said. “She is looking down on us right now, enjoying every moment of this.”
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