Miss Helen L. Droessler lived in Bancroft, a small city in Kossuth County of north-central Iowa.
Bancroft was platted in 1881 and named for George Bancroft (1800-1891) – the politician, diplomat, and eminent historian whose “History of the United States” became the most influential historical study during the 19th century.
As Secretary of the Navy in 1845, Bancroft founded the US Naval Academy at Annapolis.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bancroft,_Iowa
In October of 1943, Helen received a postcard from Sister Camille.
Sister Camille wrote from the College of Saint Theresa, a Catholic women’s college operated by the Sisters of Saint Francis in Winona, Minnesota.
Winona is a city and County Seat of Winona County – in the “bluff country” along the Mississippi River.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winona_County,_Minnesota
Saint Theresa’s was founded as a college in 1905, and was led by two remarkable women – Sister Leo Tracey, O.S.F. and the pioneering doctor, Molly Malloy (who later became Sister Mary Aloysius Malloy, O.S.F.).
The college educated generations of successful professional women, lay and religious, but was unable to navigate the difficulties of a private, church-related, institution for women at the end of the 20th century.
The College closed in 1989, although it’s signature leadership course of study is still used in other settings, and the campus has been adapted for other educational purposes.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/College_of_Saint_Teresa
The face of the postcard is a photograph of the cloister between Alverna Hall and the Collegiate Church of St. Mary of the Angels on the campus of the College.
It is a very pleasing picture of a serene and classical setting for intellectual and spiritual pursuits.
The message, addressed to “Dear Helen”, is an acknowledgement of received payment of the Alumni Dues for 1943-1944.
The college is grateful to the alumni who support the institution and the message is sent with “kindest wishes of all at Saint Theresa’s.”
The writer of the postcard message, Sister M. Camille Bowe, O. S. F. became President of the College (1952-1969).
Genealogical Note
Helen Doessler appears to be may one of the many successful graduates of the College of Saint Theresa.
On September 20, 1920, Helen Louise Droessler was born in Bancroft, Iowa.
She was the daughter of Arnold Alphonse Droessler (1890-1970) and Rose Catherine Mescher (1897-1954).
Helen had three sisters and five brothers.
A summary of Helen’s remarkable life goes beyond the scope of a postcard story; I have included a link to her biography.
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/183760670/helen_louise_grabowska
She taught at a variety of schools in Iowa and Minnesota, she operated an educational program for the US Army in occupied Japan in the early 1950’s.
While studying for her Master’s Degree at The University of Wisconsin-Madison, she met PhD, student Melvin F. Grabowska – a native of South Dakota.
Helen and Melvin married when he completed his PhD. In 1955.
The couple taught at colleges in Madison and Beloit, Wisconsin and at St. Cloud, Minnesota before taking positions in Aberdeen, South Dakota.
Helen was actively engaged in a long list of associations and organizations.
After Melvin’s death in 1990, Helen continued to teach in a variety of capacities.
She died in Mankato, Minnesota in April of 2014, in her 94th year.
