Benedictine Sister Colette (Darlene) Primus, 89, died Jan. 4 at St. Scholastica Convent, St. Cloud. The Eucharist of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 10:30 a.m. Tuesday, Jan. 11, at Sacred Heart Chapel, St. Benedict’s Monastery, St. Joseph with burial in the monastery cemetery. Friends may call at St. Scholastica Convent on Monday, Jan. 10, for a prayer service at 1 p.m., followed by visitation until 4:15 p.m., or for a vigil prayer service at 7 p.m. at St. Benedict’s Monastery. Visitation continues at 9 a.m. until the time of the funeral.
Darlene Primus was born Dec. 17, 1933, to Anthony and Clotilde (Wander) Primus in Melrose, the youngest of nine children. She attended St. Boniface Grade School, Melrose High School and St. Benedict’s High School in St. Joseph. She entered St. Benedict’s Monastery Aug. 22, 1948, was received into the novitiate June 20, 1951, where she received the name Sister Colette, made first monastic profession July 11, 1952, and perpetual monastic profession July 11, 1955. She celebrated her golden jubilee in 2002 and her 60th jubilee in 2012.
A graduate of the College of St. Benedict, St. Joseph, Sister Colette earned a bachelor’s degree in elementary education with minors in English and history and master’s degree in informational media, library and audiovisual from St. Cloud State University, St. Cloud. She also attended Diocesan Teachers’ College and College of St. Catherine, both in St. Paul, St. John’s University, Collegeville, and Alverno College, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Sister Colette served in several cities in Minnesota: as teacher and/or principal at St. Peter’s School in St. Cloud, in Hutchinson, Urbank, Albany, St. Augusta and Lastrup. She served in library management and/or as media consultant for the Diocese of St. Cloud at St. Augustine’s School in St. Cloud, St. Joseph Lab School in St. Joseph, St. Anthony’s Grade School and John XXIII in St. Cloud, and in Pierz.
Sister Colette also worked with the monastery’s Monastic Enterprises and served in the Whitby Gift Shop at St. Benedict’s Monastery and in the gift shop at St. Scholastica Convent. From 1999 to 2007, she lived in the Welcoming House at St. Benedict’s Monastery, supporting women in the early stages of exploring a vocation. She also worked as a board member and team participant of St. Cloud National Marriage Encounter for many years. She moved to St. Scholastica Convent in 2012.
Sister Colette is survived by members of her Benedictine community, nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her parents, her brothers, Donald (+Lois), Benedictine Brother George, LeRoy (+Ruth) and James (+Florence; +Bernice), and by her sisters, Verona (+Erwin) Meyer, Lorraine (+Joseph) Revermann, Mae Rose (+Ralph) Baltes and Mary Ann (+Howard) Hinnerichs.
Please direct memorial gifts to the Sisters of the Order of St. Benedict Outreach Ministries.