March 4, 1935 – April 9, 2026
Sr. M. Hildeburga Schmidt was born on March 4, 1935, in Oberölsbach (Oberpfalz), in the parish of Gnadenberg. She was the third of six children of Karl and Theresia Schmidt (née Stark).
On March 7, 1935, she was baptized in the Unterölsbach branch church and given the name Julianna.
From 1941 to 1947, she attended elementary school, followed by a two-year vocational school in Gnadenberg.
Until she entered the convent of the Sisters of the Sorrowful Mother in Abenberg on July 30, 1955, she helped out on her parents’ large farm.
A love of nature was deeply ingrained in her heart.
March 19, 1956, was her day of investiture, on which she received the name “Maria Hildeburga of the Precious Blood.” After her novitiate, she made her first solemn vows on March 19, 1958, and her perpetual vows in 1963.
Sr. M. Hildeburga worked at Marienburg in the kitchen, around the house, in the garden, and on our small farm.
In 1975, she was transferred to the order’s own “St. Annaheim” nursing home in Deining, where she also worked in the house, kitchen, and garden.
In January 1990, she returned to Abenberg and once again worked in the kitchen, house, and garden. For years, she sang in the sisters’ choir. At her suggestion, we have been singing “This is the day, this is the day the Lord has made. Rejoice with him, let us be glad” during the Liturgy of the Hours in the Easter Octave for many years.
In 2014, she moved to the Schwesternwohnheim to live with her fellow sisters.
There she took on the care of the flowers and many small, unseen tasks.
However, she saw her main task in caring for Sr. M. Nikola, whom she looked after with great love, devotion, and care.
When the time came that Sr. M. Hildeburga herself needed help in 2021 and 2023 due to falls and was confined to a wheelchair, the two of them often sat together in the common room in quiet companionship.
Sr. M. Hildeburga was an attentive, extremely dependable, caring, and reserved sister; she was very close to nature, loving animals and the garden with its vegetables and many flowers.
Her physical strength gradually declined until she became almost constantly bedridden.
Not a word of complaint was ever heard from her! She rejoiced at every visit and was still able to consciously celebrate Easter through the loudspeaker.
On April 9, 2026, around 10:00 a.m., the Risen Lord called her to Himself, accompanied by the presence of her fellow sisters.
On April 14, 2026, she was laid to rest in the Sisters’ Cemetery in the presence of her fellow sisters, her sister Mrs. Resi Falk, and her nieces. At the funeral, the birds accompanied our prayers and singing with their chirping. Afterward, we celebrated the Requiem Mass in St. Stilla Church.
Sr. M. Hildeburga, rest in peace!
Submitted by Sr. Beate Nieberler