Oct. 16, 2019

By Bob Beckstead
Contributing writer

MASSENA – When Sister Cindy Sullivan, BVM, left New York in 1973, she was following her dream to become a professional golfer.

Instead, she found herself in Quito, the capital of Ecuador, where she spent more than 40 years working with the Center for Working Families and The Working Boy’s Center, which provides education, day care, vocational training and meals for thousands of Ecuadorian families.

“I’m originally from Massena. I wanted to be a professional golfer. I went out to California to become a professional golfer. They wanted me to work at playing golf, and I didn’t want to work at playing golf. So I joined the Peace Corps,” said Sister Cindy, who belongs to the Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary community.

She requested an assignment in Africa, but instead the Peace Corps sent her to Quito, Ecuador.

Before her journey to California, and then on to Ecuador, she had graduated from Onondaga Community College after studying dental hygiene, and that was her role when she arrived in Ecuador. She worked as a dental hygienist for four-and-a-half years before switching over to teach special education.

While in Ecuador, she lived in an intentional community with a BVM sister, Jesuit priest, married people, and single men, young and old.

“After four-and-a-half years, I realized God had been nudging me, calling me, and I finally decided to bite the bullet and accept it,” she said.

Sister Cindy returned to the U.S., to Dubuque, Iowa for her novitiate, as well as to finish her degree in biology. After first vows, she returned to Ecuador, which was her home for 40 years.

“It’s beautiful. It’s 9,300 feet above sea level and you’re right in the Andes Mountains. It’s a city that’s like 35 miles long and only a mile wide. You never really feel like you’re in a big city because it’s only a mile wide. A mile in either direction and you could be back out in the country,” she said.

“It’s incredibly beautiful. It’s springtime year-round. Twelve hours of daylight, 12 hours of nighttime year-round. At 6 o’clock it’s light. At 6 o’clock it’s dark. It might vary by 10 minutes,” Sister Cindy said. “There’s no humidity. It’s 60, 70 degrees year-round. You do have a couple months of rainy season, but that’s not bad.”

She served as a jack of all trades.

“Six of us ran the place. I taught all kinds of things. I taught baking. I taught English. I taught computers. I did all kinds of counseling and made house visits,” she said. “Everybody does a lot of things.”

They were joined by volunteers who came to live with them every year.

“We had year-long volunteers. Usually we had an average of 12 to 15 volunteers. We received high school groups and college groups and confirmation classes from all over the world, who came and spent two weeks with us throughout the year for a mission experience,” Sister Cindy said.

“They would go with us to help build a house on the weekend or something. College kids, high school kids, they’re easy to impress. You don’t have to preach to them at all, just let them see the way the rest of the world lives. We take them off the beaten path and they’re going to see what it’s really like,” she said.

After a total of 43 years in Ecuador, she returned to the United States two years ago and, after preaching in California, returned to Massena. She is currently the executive director of Massena Meals on Wheels.
But Ecuador is still on her mind.

“It’s a whole different culture, a whole different world, a whole different pace. I loved the work; I loved the people. It’s so fulfilling. I feel so blessed to be part of something like that when you’re helping people like that,” Sister Cindy said.

Several weeks ago, when Massena Meals on Wheels was closed for the week, she returned to Ecuador.

“It was my first time back after two years. It was really emotional to go back. They had a reception for me. We had a little party. It was just good to see the people. There were a lot of tears shed, but they were good tears. They understand that I can’t be there this time. When I left, I couldn’t really say goodbye to people,” she said.
“I was just so blessed to be part of it, and I hope to be part of it again,” she said. “Poverty is a whole different ball game. I think the most hope-filled thing is when young people come from this culture and they’re happy. We’re not happy and we have everything. They’ve got nothing, but they’ve got each other. They’re got community.”