Kirkwood’s Tau Center:At Epiphany Season, Franciscans plan for 125th anniversary

By kirkwood Times

Kirkwood’s Franciscan Sisters displayed 200 diverse nativity scenes for Christmas at their Tau Center, 335 S. Kirkwood Road. The unique displays have now given way to Epiphany Season concerns and planning for 2026.

A key event for 2026 for the Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Help is the 125th anniversary of their coming to St. Louis. Their Gateway City history includes years of care for the creation, the sick, poor, and struggling immigrants.

“In fact, caring for immigrants was a primary mission when we first came to Chicago in 1894,” noted Minister General Sister Renita Brummer. “We were assigned to help with a very large influx of Polish families to that city.”

They were led by Josephine Dudzik at St. Stanislaus Kostka Church to serve immigrants with learning English, health care needs and social services. Today, Chicago is cited for having the second largest Polish population after Warsaw, Poland. 

Franciscans came to a bustling St. Louis in 1901 after three sisters here saw immigrants in great need of help. The nuns followed canonical procedures to establish a new congregation of sisters in May of that year.

On May 29 of this year, Franciscans will gather with family and supporters for a 125th Jubilee celebration Mass and reception at St. Justin Martyr Parish in Sunset Hills. Prospective attendees are welcome, but do need to register via the website at fsolph.org.

“Our mission remains to help immigrants, to give voice to the voiceless, to bring peace where there is strife,” said Brummer. “We work with immigrants to St. Louis to help with housing needs, food support and legal issues.”

Of course, consistent with their

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