Fourth Mother General Columba Stack recognized in first window of the West Door of the chapel

The dove on the first window of the West door represents Mother Columba Stack, Novice mistress and fourth Mother General.  

But there is a mystery here. The original iconography states “A dove (symbol justified by her name as for her homonyms Cordua and Colmbre.) (In French: symbole motive par le nom comme pour ses homonym es de Cordoue et de Colmbre.)  

‘La columbe’ is ‘dove’ in French, so that tracks with Mother Columba’s name. But, does the dove represent the man St. Columba of Iona called ‘the dove of the church’ or the woman St. Columba of Cornwall who converted when the holy spirit appeared to her in the form of a dove. Or both? 

Nothing can be found abobut the words Cordua and Colmbre, and those words don’t fit the definition of a homonym.  Are they typos or older words? 

Mother Columba Stack was born February 18, 1888. She entered the convent November 10, 1909, and received the Habit of the Sisters of St. Joseph August 2, 1910. She was pro­fessed December 31, 1912. It is assumed that she took the name Columba upon her vows. Her birth name is unknown. 

She is remembered as an outstanding teacher at Elwood, Kokomo and St. Joseph’s Academy. 

In 1924, she began assisting the Novice Mistress. The following year she became Mistress where she served until 1940 when she was named Mother General. She served two, six-year terms as Mother General and oversaw the purchase of teh Villa Maria rest home, the opening of several schools and an addition added to St. Charles Hospital in Bend, OR.  

She celebrated her golden jubilee in the summer of 1959. 

Although she had been in failing health for several years, Sister Columba died unexpectedly in the early morning of February 14, 1960. She had taught at St. Joseph Academy the Thursday before. She is buried in the Sisters of St. Joseph Cemetery on the St. Joseph Retreat & Conference Center campus. 

At the time, she was survived by her sister, Sr. Alexis Stack of the Sisters of St. Joseph, as well as another biological sister and a niece, Sister Aquinas, both in Ireland. 

To see the St. Joseph Chapel door stained glass images along with a picture of the person who inspired the image, follow this link https://www.stjosephretreat.org/chapel-doors