North Province

In 1912, Our Mother Foundress, Blessed Maria Teresa of St. Joseph, set foot on the ‘Land of the Free’ to establish more homes for the Carmelite Sisters of the Divine Heart of Jesus (DCJ). It was a breath of fresh air arriving from Europe, since this wonderful country of opportunity would be a place to serve and care for the early immigrants who had fled the pressures and burdens of their troubled homelands. Mother’s goal was always to save many souls through prayer and reparation. The first founded home on this side of the ocean was at Milwaukee, Wisconsin’s South Pierce Street in 1912. Sisters wearing our brown Carmelite habit became a familiar sight up and down those dirt streets until it was soon outgrown. In 1913, Mother Foundress established a children’s home in East Chicago, Indiana and then a home for the elderly in Kenosha, WI. Back to Milwaukee in 1916, God’s Providence moved us to the suburb of Wauwatosa. Our Foundress was actually shown a wooden staircase in a dream that designated this home to become our first American provincial motherhouse and novitiate. It wasn't until 1949 that a bishop from the Grand Rapids diocese in Michigan invited the DCJ Sisters to stake their service for God's elderly. The current 15-acre location of our apostolate broke ground on May 4, 1967. Before returning to Europe in 1920, she had founded fifteen homes in Canada & USA alone.

Armed with the fervent prayers of our pioneer Sisters; after many meetings with bishops and negotiations with landowners, convents came into being under our patroness, Our Lady of Mount Carmel guiding the growth of her Order. We also entrust all our homes to the protection of St. Joseph whom we venerate as our “father and guide”. Due to the establishment of many DCJ homes and convents, our Mother General and her council decided, during the 1960s, to create separate provinces according to geographical locations. Today, our North Province consists of apostolic service in Wisconsin, Indiana, and Michigan.

To this day, the four homes featured on our website have endured for many years and are still thriving in the areas of child-care, nursing and assisted living for the sick and aged, services to disabled adults, and a thriving hospice program for those close to death. The heart of each Carmelite home are our chapels. Yet, each room echoes the spirit of hundreds of our Sisters who have followed the directive of our Mother Foundress: See God in all, Serve God in all, Love God in all. This zeal is manifested throughout our history. Although we no longer see our “founding sisters,” we experience their presence among us in our deeply rooted contemplative and active way of life – the life that they handed down to us through their own deep spirit of sacrifice and service. Black and white photos and sepia prints captured only glimpses of all the selfless love, dedicated commitment and unwavering service our departed Sisters contributed to make the Northern Province what it is today. We invite you to see all this and more for yourself and to experience the richness of our Carmelite spirituality.