Sister Anita Smith, M.M. celebrated her 70th Jubilee as a Maryknoll Sister on February 12th, 2017. She was born in Hartford, CT, Anita Smith earned a B.S. degree in Econ./Business Administration from St. Joseph’s College in West Hartford, CT, before entering Maryknoll in 1947. Sister Anita was assigned to Hawaii in 1950 and taught in Wailua and Punahou. She represented the Hawaii Region at the Maryknoll Sisters Chapter of Affairs in 1968.
After earning her M.A. in education administration from Fairfield University, CT, Sister Anita became principal of Maryknoll Elementary School in Honolulu for the next ten years.
Sister Anita then earned an M.A. degree in pastoral ministry from St. Joseph’s College in West Hartford. During her fieldwork, she taught a Confirmation class in a parish and worked in a friendship house in Hartford. Following graduation, she spent a year at Covenant House in New York City.
Returning to Hawaii, she did pastoral work in Kona, on the island of Hawaii, where her ministries varied from alternating chaplaincy with an ecumenical group of ministers to participating in a drug awareness program in the schools and Bible study classes.
In 1990, she served for three years in the office of congregational personnel and lay employees in Maryknoll, NY. Then then joined a community of semi-retired Maryknoll Sisters in Waterbury, CT, where she was employed at Catholic Family Service and later at Trust House, a learning center for the under-privileged in Hartford.
Sister Anita joined the Eastern U.S. Region in 2002 and lives in Marlborough, CT.