Sister Sue Bruno has dedicated her life to Catholic service and motorcycle riding
Sister Sue was baptized Catholic when she was 13, and her father sent her to and all-girls high school where she was taught by the Sisters of St. Francis of Mary Immaculate, the order for which she now serves. But she has still maintained her love of riding motorcycles. (Photo courtesy of Sue Bruno)
By Hannah Kintner, Staff Writer kintner13@up.edu
She's a hall director, a vowed woman, a licensed social worker, and she rides a Harley Davidson. Sister Sue Bruno serves in the Order of St. Francis, and this year she took the position of Fields hall director. And riding a Harley isn't the most interesting thing about her.
"I have ridden motorcycles since I was 21," Bruno said, "since the day that I could get my own, against my parents' wishes."
Bruno developed an interest in motorcycles when her godfather took her for a spin on the back of his when she was a young woman. She has been hooked ever since.
"I was smitten," Bruno said. "For me it's a passion. I just love to ride."
Bruno was once in a serious accident, totaling the motorcycle she was riding, but she was back on two wheels in less than a year.
Bruno says she plans to ride as long as she can. She also enjoys hiking, fishing, traveling and swapping books with the Schoenfeldt Assistant Hall Director Dan Hannon.
Journey to Sisterhood
Bruno grew up in Chicago and was baptized Catholic when she was 13. She and her siblings attended public grade school, but her father's plans for her high school education changed the course of her life.
"Because I was always in trouble, my father didn't want me to go to a co-ed high school," Bruno said. "He wanted me to go to an all-girls high school, and that was the school where the Sisters of St. Francis of Mary Immaculate-my congregation- taught me."
Bruno was amazed by the kindness of the sisters and soon longed to impact the lives of young people the way the sisters had affected in hers.
"In so many ways, they saved my life," Bruno said. "I was eternally grateful and pursued religious life."
At 23 years old, Bruno made Illinois history when she became the first female telephone installer in the state. At 25, she began to pursue religious life, before leaving at 30 and returning at 33.
"It was an interesting time in my life, but I really always knew I wanted to be a sister," Bruno said. "It was just me growing up and knowing that I was ready to do it."
Living in Fields
Bruno has an open-door policy and her spunky personality keeps things fun for the Fields resident assistants.
Sierra Bray, an RA in Fields, appreciates the fun dynamic Bruno brings to the dorm. One of Bray's favorite experiences with Bruno was when the two of them turned their sleepy sauntering into dancing while doing rounds at 2 a.m.
"Those rounds can be kind of dreary at times, so to have her dancing with me in the halls, that was fun," Bray said.
Besides all the fun and games, Bray looks up to Bruno as a mentor.
"She really frames the RA position and working in hall staff as more of a ministry, so we try to minister to our women instead of just manage them," Bray said.
Alexa Roy, another RA in Fields, appreciates Bruno's ability to be open and honest in a compassionate way.
"She's very direct, and as an RA working with her as the hall director, it's refreshing to always know where you stand," Roy said. "How do you grow and learn if you're not getting direct feedback all the time?"
Roy's favorite Sister Sue memory was when Bruno thought it would be fun to unpack some old habits and had the Fields Hall staff arrive at the winter Residents Life banquet dressed as a group of sisters.
"Everyone thought we looked great, and Sister Sue was in her full habit with the white and the black," Roy said. "It was just hilarious."
Bruno recently received her congregation's consent to stay in Portland for another year and will return as hall director next year.
"I have always loved working with this age group," Bruno said. "I find it's not only what I could possibly bring to their lives or to the role, but what's more important is how they help to keep me young."
This year, Fields RAs arrived to the winter Residence Life banquet dressed up in Sister Sue’s old habits to really arrive in style. (Photo courtesy of Sue Bruno)
Sister Sue Bruno and RA Sierra Bray, junior, pose in front of Bray’s bicycle and Bruno’s Harly Davidson. Bruno has been riding since she was 21 when her godfather took her for a ride on his motorcylce. (Photo courtesy of Sue Bruno)
