SAN FRANCISCO—San Francisco Mayor Mark Farrell declared March 31 to be “Sister Jean Dolores Schmidt Day.” Mayor Farrell released the following statement on Saturday:
“As a born and raised Jesuit-educated San Franciscan, it is my absolute honor to proclaim March 31, 2018 Sister Jean Schmidt Day in the City and County of San Francisco. Sister Jean is a native San Franciscan, attended Most Holy Redeemer Grammar School and St. Paul High School, and at 98 years young, has been the most loyal and vocal supporter of the University of Loyola-Chicago’s men’s basketball team. Her mixture of scouting and spiritual advice has guided the underdog Holy Ramblers unprecedented journey to today’s Final Four matchup against the University of Michigan in San Antonio. Today, I am a Holy Rambler and will be rooting for them to defeat Michigan and become the lowest seeded team to ever make a national championship game.”
Sister Jean Dolores gained notoriety for her devotion to the University of Loyola-Chicago’s men’s basketball team. She received a traditional Jesuit education herself during her educational years at both Most Holy Redeemer Grammar School and St. Paul High School. Both schools are in San Francisco proper with Holy Redeemer Grammar occupying the Castro District, while St. Paul’s resides in the Noe Valley Neighborhood respectively.
Loyola-Chicago’s success in the NCAA men’s tournament has been created to Sister Schmidt. The team known as the Holy Ramblers made it to the Final Four in a matchup against the University of Michigan that would knock them out of the competition before the championship game. The Ramblers took to Twitter before their game to acknowledge the vote of confidence from Mayor Farrell.
As the New York Times first reported, Schmidt spent much of her professional life teaching in California before she made the move to Chicago in 1961. In Chicago, she would continue her teaching career before moving to the administrative side of affairs at the Mundelein College. The Mundelein College is an all-women’s school that was founded by the Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary who still run the school to this day.
