Sr. M. Bernadeta Banja

For a very short time, she was a cook at the St. Joseph’s Institute in Sarajevo and in October 1932 she was reassigned to Mary's home in Pale, where she stayed for the rest of her life.
In Pale she cooked for her sisters and for all the people who stayed there: the sick, the children, the poor, the guests, chance travelers...sometimes for more than fifty people. And at that time working in the kitchen was very demanding.
She was committed to her duties, everyday life, and her religious profession. Sister M. Maximilliana Weisner said: ‘I never had to repeat what to do.’
Sister M. Roza Gavran said: “...She was never in a hurry and didn’t waste her time. Sr. Bernadeta gladly accepted the religious way of life, sacrifice, and silence. She was a quiet and neat sister. She was always smiling. "
Sister M. Valeria Trgovčević wrote the following about Sr. Bernadeta: ‘God’s hand sculpted her body and soul so she would be a ray of sunshine to those she lived with and lived for. She was a little heart and lifeline of our small community in Pale. She knew what and how much it meant to give yourself when doing something for others ...’
In early December 1941 Sr. Bernadeta, terrified by gunfire, bomb, and grenade explosions, asked her fellow sisters to allow her to leave for Sarajevo. It remains unclear why she stayed in Pale. However, it is easy to conclude that her faithfulness and obedience won over her desire for tranquillity and safety.