I grew up in a small community in Washington. There were two churches in town: a Catholic Church and a Community Church that served all of the Protestant faith groups in the area. As such, we were taught the basics of Christianity: to love Jesus and to practice the Golden Rule.
Our small youth group was taken on field trips to visit churches (Baptist, Lutheran, and Evangelical) located in other towns, as well as the Catholic Church in our own community. I was taken with the Catholic ritual but never pursued it in my youth.
I moved to Portland, Oregon, to continue my education. I interned at Good Samaritan Hospital and became a Registered Medical Technologist. I moved to California, and with the encouragement of a friend I looked into the Catholic Faith and was baptized in 1963.
After returning to Portland I was invited to join a prayer group that met every Monday afternoon. It was there that I met the Sisters of the Holy Names. There was something about these women that caused me to ponder what my life was all about. I resisted the tugging at my heart until I could no longer say no. There were Associates in the prayer group, and I was invited to look at the possibility of joining with them. I soon became a new member, and the Sisters and Associates became a very important part of my life. They were soon to be my main Spiritual Food.
I left the safe environment of the hospital arena and entered corporate America as a medical equipment sales representative. The support of the Sisters, their prayers and encouragement, helped me fulfill my call to bring high-quality and affordable laboratory testing to the smallest and poorest communities that had hospitals to serve them. There were many long and lonely days and nights away from home, traveling and making sales calls, that caused doubts and discouragement. Upon returning home, however, and meeting with the Sisters and Associates I was refueled and eager to continue the work.
I became the co-director of the Associates in Oregon in 1992. I continue in that role today. My dream for the future is to inspire others to fulfill their spiritual goals by joining with the Holy Names Community to share hopes, joy, faith, and love as we live out our gospel values as Jesus taught them.
Nancy Gast, SNJM Associate
"My dream for the future is to inspire others to fulfill their spiritual goals by joining with the Holy Names Community to share hopes, joy, faith, and love as we live out our gospel values as Jesus taught them."
— Nancy Gast, SNJM Associate
