Catherine Power Becker ’45: Reflecting on Eight Decades of Rosary College Impact
When Catherine Power Becker ’45 left small-town Iowa in the fall of 1942 to attend Rosary College, it would herald an 80-year-long relationship with her alma mater.
And though she had never stepped foot into Power Hall before arriving as a shy sophomore, she knew its origin well enough: Catherine’s great-great grandfather David Power was the father of Mother Emily Power, OP, leader of the Sinsinawa Dominicans for 42 years.
Endless stories, passed down throughout the years, of young Emily’s arrival in America in 1852 were intertwined with those of her own family. The Power family, through their familial connection to Fr. Louis Power, OP, and his mentor, Fr. Samuel Mazzuchelli, OP, encouraged young Emily and her four sisters to attend St. Clara Academy, run by the Sinsinawa Dominicans, in Benton, Wisconsin. All five of the Power sisters would eventually join the Order of St. Dominic.
And so, with this family legacy in mind, Catherine Power arrived at Rosary. A $100 scholarship and a part-time job working in the college library and dining hall helped pay her tuition and boarding expenses. “In those days, we’d dress for class in knobby knit sweaters, pleated plaid skirts, ankle socks and saddle oxfords,” Catherine remembers.
On Sundays, resident students were expected to wear a black dress and veil, or hat, for Mass. Another tradition was the ringing of the bell in Power Hall at 7:30 p.m. each weekday evening, signifying the onset of Quiet Hour.
While there were more “dayhops,” or commuters, who attended Rosary, those who did board at the college made the most of their life together—and their weekends.
“We’d often ride the L into the city for Saturday lunch, shopping, or just exploring,” recalled Catherine. “We’d dress up in suits, hats, gloves, silk stockings and heels.”
Sometimes, the chance to see someone famous drew the students to Soldier Field.
“When FDR was running for his fourth term, many of us turned out to see him ride in his open car around the track,” Catherine said.
Other weekend activities during the war years included holding dressy tea dances on Sunday afternoons in Power Hall. Groups of young ensigns-in-training from the Great Lakes Naval Station attended in their finest military uniforms to dance to local bands. Community service focused on helping the war effort, and Rosary students would gather weekly in the Activity Room to roll bandages for first aid packs, Catherine said.
“There was also a lot of card playing, particularly bridge,” she recalled. Upon graduating as an economics and political science major in 1945, Catherine earned a teaching credential at the University of Iowa. After several years of teaching in Iowa, she met and married Edwin Becker, a WWII Army Air Corps aviator and a doctoral student at the University of Wisconsin. When the opportunity to go west opened in the mid- 1950s with faculty recruitment for the burgeoning California State College system, the young couple and their growing family moved to Long Beach, California.
As their family grew to include five children, Catherine returned to teaching in public schools, retiring in the early 1980s, along with her husband. They continued to travel extensively throughout the world, frequently exchanging homes with European nationals and cultivating long-lasting friendships until Ed’s passing in 2009.
Catherine especially enjoyed attending Rosary class reunions when time permitted, remaining close to half a dozen Rosary classmates, all of whom have since passed away. She fondly remembers two of her classmates and dearest friends who became Dominican nuns and eminent instructors at Dominican University: Sr. Mary Woods, OP, and Sr. Mary Wright, OP.
In 2013, the Catherine Power Becker Scholarship was endowed to assist students with financial need.
“I am the woman I am today because of my experiences at Rosary College,” Catherine said. “It’s been more than 80 years since I crossed the threshold of Power Hall, but those memories are as near and dear to me as ever.”
Catherine celebrated her 101st birthday in January. She is mother to five adult children, grandmother to 11 and great-grandmother to 19, all under the age of 15.
“I’ve got to be the luckiest woman I know,” she said.
—Submitted by the family of Catherine Power Becker