File 3 - Correspondence, articles – Sister Klutterman[n]

The eldest of 12 children, she grew up in the Rhineland town of Gevenich. As an aftermath of the First World War, the German currency was deflated, resulting in Katharina and three of her sisters immigrating to Holland to seek a stable income to help the family finances. Her three sisters entered religious congregations and Katharina assumed the responsibility of financing the studies of a younger brother, Hubert, who wished to enter the seminary. The St. Rafael Society advised her to go to Canada to the Sister of Service. Upon arriving in 1932 at Halifax's Pier 21, Sister Kathleen Schenck took Katharina and other German immigrants to Settlement House, the Redemptorists’ German immigration centre in their downtown Toronto, adjacent to their parish of St. Patrick's. While working as a domestic, including as a priest’s housekeeper in Newmarket, Ontario, Katarina enrolled in evening high school classes, becoming fluent in English and attaining a certificate in domestic science. Her brother having been ordained in 1936, at the age of 36, she entered on August 2, 1937, making first vows on February 2, 1940 and final vows on February 2, 1945.

Sister Kluttermann was posted to the women’s residence in Montreal (1940-1956), where she was reunited with Sister Schenck, who was the superior. She combined duties at the residence with immigration work from meeting the Sudetan refugees in 1939 to the European immigrants after the Second World War. She traveled to the ports in Montreal and Halifax, as well as accompanying refugees on the immigration trains from Saint John, where she used her fluency in in German, Dutch, English and Polish. After the Montreal residence, she was appointed to the Motherhouse (1956-1959) and travelled to the western missions as a seamstress during this posting. Returning to the residences, she joined the Winnipeg mission (1959-1973) until its closure and was appointed to the Halifax residence (1973-1980). She retired to the Montreal mission (1980-1984) and later moved to St. Catharines, Ontario, joining the other retired sisters at Niagara Retirement Manor(1984-1989) and Scarborough Court (1989-1999) in Toronto. In 2001, she celebrated her 100th birthday. Due to declining health, Sister Kluttermann had moved to Providence Centre (1999-2003), where she died four days short of her 102th birthday.

The wake service was held at Scarborough Court for Sisters Kluttermann and Irene Profit, who died within hours of each other on February 13, 2003. A joint funeral mass was celebrated by Fr. James Profit, S.J., Sister Profit’s nephew, at St. Boniface church. Burial followed at the community's plot in Mount Hope cemetery, Toronto.