St. Peter parishioner, June Pierce celebrates a century of faith, joy and service

June Pierce never considered herself a particularly adventurous person. In fact, as a girl, she describes herself as “a quiet child,” one who “absorbed” the conversations of others. Having just celebrated her 100th birthday on June 6th of this year, however, she now finds her own remembrances that others are anxious to absorb.

“I am very grateful to God for letting me live so long and making sure I was born when I was,” June said. “It was quieter, everything was slower. I needed to not be born in this age, when everything moves so fast and changes from day to day. I was born when we still had time to think about things.”

June is a whirlwind of motion and energy, laughter and joy from her South Hill home, built by her late husband and on the same street as her childhood home built by her father. Her days are a blur of correspondence with pen pals around the globe, working on her family’s genealogy, keeping current with the news, and visiting neighbors.

“I'm grateful for all the lovely neighbors I have,” she said. “I live in the same neighborhood I grew up in and they make me feel safe.”

The feeling must be mutual as June recalls the recognition bestowed upon her by  neighbors grateful for her work on issues of shared concern before the city’s planning and zoning board.

A postcard from friends visiting Normandy on the 80th celebration of D-Day has arrived in the morning mail and adorns a living room table alongside a plate of cookies for visitors.

“I remember '44,” she said. “I graduated secretarial school in 1942 and worked as a secretary on Howard and Riverside for the Spokane and Eastern branch of Seattle First National Bank. I was secretary to Patsy Clark's grandson.

“That was my [20th] birthday. I didn't hear anything about [D-Day] until I got home and my Dad was keeping up on everything. Everybody was interested, but you only got bits and pieces back then because there was no television or anything.”

June also spends a good deal of her time organizing photos, keepsakes and family heirlooms, praying for too many friends, family, and neighbors to count, and donating her time as one of Mary’s Maids at St. Peter Catholic Church—a group of parishioners who volunteer to clean the Church.

“We’re down to just three members [in Mary’s Maids] so there’s a lot of work to be done, but do you know I’ve missed only one of my scheduled sessions cleaning every other Thursday in 15 years,” she stated. “Of course, I didn’t give up driving until I was 94 years old either.”

It’s a both a pleasure and challenge to keep pace with June as she moves from one topic of conversation to another, and physically from one treasured keepsake in her home to the next.

“You’re busy for so many years when you’re raising a family, and I was taking care of my parents those years as well, she said. “I made up my mind after becoming a widow not to be a little old lady sitting in the corner in my rocking chair expecting everyone to take care of me or feel sorry for me. But I must say that having a bit of quiet time now and then has really been a blessing.”

It’s during one of these “quiet times” that June agrees to share some of her memories and reflections of her Catholic faith and upbringing.

“Mom, bless her heart, always took us to church by hook or by crook,” June remembered. “I was baptized at Sacred Heart and went to summer school at the church to prepare for First Communion and Confirmation.”

June still has a rosary given to her by a local storekeeper when she was just five and not yet in school. She still prays for the soul who left it behind in a rail car before it reached the shopkeep’s shelves.

The “Religion Award” June received at her Marycliff High School graduation commencement ceremony in May 1942 is also at hand.

“Bishop Charles White was presenting each of the 52 kids in my graduating class with our diplomas,” June related. “I remember kneeling and kissing his ring, as did all the students at that time. Back then we were also required to take our report cards to our parish priest to sign, as well as to our parents for their signature, of course.”

June’s parish priest at Sacred Heart in those days was Father Oakley O’Connor, who later became Monsignor O’Connor. June said, “I’ve lived through every one of the diocese’s bishops.”

A 1956 charter member of St. Peter Catholic Church, June recalled how she, with her mother and sisters, often took a street car to old Sacred Heart at 7th and Chandler, as bus service in Spokane did not begin until 1936 when June was 12 years old.

“I remember Vatican II was a big change. We don’t really think about how we practice our faith, but it is so different from what it was,” June reminisced. “The Church has softened some from those days, and the priests seem much more human now.”

With the perspective that perhaps only a centenarian might have, June, in a pensive moment of reflection, noted, “I often wonder why God picked me out to last so long. I live simply. I eat simply ... I'm just a plain Jane, always have been.”

June’s parents married in 1914 at St. Joseph Catholic Church on Dean Street in Spokane. She is the last among her parents’ six girls still living. She and her husband, Wayne, raised their two children, Paul and Patty, in the faith.

“Father lived to be 100 years and seven months; Mother lived to almost 89, “June said. “All us girls were very close.

“Two of my nieces are still living: one is 93 and lives in New Hampshire, the other is 92 years old and still working as an interior designer in San Diego,” June added. “Family has always been high on my list. Family and religion.”

Between family, neighbors, friends both near and abroad, her church community, and her unshakeable faith and devotion to our Lord, June Pierce has not only weathered the last century with grace and charm ... a seemingly boundless energy ... she has thrived.

“God has been good to me. He's in my life, I can see it. He guides my life, June said. “In one way I'm anxious to see my relatives and dear ones again, but He knows what he's doing.”

“My Catholic faith is the basis of my life,” she added. “God is leading me. I've felt that so many times in my life. It came easy to me to follow along, to trust in God. So far so good, now I’m ready to get on with the next 100 years.”