Sister Jean Dolores Schmidt, the beloved, longtime chaplain of the Loyola-Chicago men’s basketball team who became a folk hero during its Cinderella run to the Final Four in 2018, died Thursday, the school said.
She was 106.
“In many roles at Loyola over the course of more than 60 years, Sister Jean was an invaluable source of wisdom and grace for generations of students, faculty, and staff,” Loyola president Mark C. Reed said. “While we feel grief and a sense of loss, there is great joy in her legacy. Her presence was a profound blessing for our entire community, and her spirit abides in thousands of lives. In her honor, we can aspire to share with others the love and compassion Sister Jean shared with us.”
Sister Jean — born Dolores Bertha Schmidt on Aug. 21, 1919, then taking the name Sister Jean Dolores in 1937 — joined the staff at Loyola-Chicago in 1991. Three years later, she became part of the basketball team, first as an academic adviser before transitioning to chaplain. Health issues caused her to step down from her role in August.
She was the Ramblers’ No. 1 fan, and that was on display during the 2018 NCAA tournament when, as the No. 11 seeds, they went on an improbable run to the Final Four, ultimately losing to Michigan. Sister Jean, 98 at the time, was with them every step of the way, praying for the team — and its opponents — before each game and encouraging the Ramblers to play hard, play together and play smart.
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And if they lost? She told them regularly not to sweat it; it just wasn’t meant to be.
“She’s an incredible person,” star Loyola-Chicago guard Clayton Custer said at the time.
Fans throughout college basketball, and beyond, agreed.
She became an international celebrity during the Ramblers’ run. Sister Jean bobbleheads and athletic apparel sold fast. She was the subject of countless national TV interviews. And there were even news conferences for her ahead of games. During the loss to Michigan at the Alamodome in San Antonio, T-shirts read “Win One for the Nun!” and a sign in the crowd encouraged the Wolverines to give obedience to “Jean’s Plan.”
Her fame didn’t wane in the years to come.
When she turned 100, Loyola-Chicago announced a scholarship fund and endowment in her honor to support students, and Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker proclaimed Aug. 21, 2019, “Sister Jean Day” across the state. When she turned 103, the Chicago train station plaza at the Loyola campus was renamed in her honor, with a large sign that read “Home of the World Famous Sister Jean!” to greet visitors there. And when she turned 105, she received a proclamation from President Joe Biden — who sent her flowers on at least one previous occasion.
Biden’s message, in part, told Sister Jean: “You have shown us all that yours is a life well lived.”
She remained close to the team, as well.
When Loyola-Chicago qualified for the NCAA tournament in 2021, a vaccinated Sister Jean was cleared to travel to Indianapolis, and before the Ramblers’ second-round game against top-seeded Illinois, she gave them a prayer and a scouting report.
“We have a great opportunity to convert rebounds as this team makes about 50% of layups and 30% of its 3 [pointers]. Our defense can take care of that,” she told the team.
It worked, as Loyola-Chicago upset the Illini to reach the Sweet 16.
“She still sends me an email after every single game,” former Loyola-Chicago coach Porter Moser once said. “There is no human like her.”
Born in San Francisco in 1919, Sister Jean grew up in a devoutly Catholic family. Her religious calling, she said, came at the age of 8. She was in third grade when she met a kind, joyful teacher who belonged to the Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Brimming with admiration, she would pray every day: “Dear God, help me understand what I should do, but please tell me I should become a BVM sister,” she recounted in her 2023 memoir.
“I guess God listened to me on that one,” she wrote.
She followed her calling to the order’s motherhouse in Dubuque, Iowa, where she made her vows. She went on to teach at Catholic schools in Chicago and Southern California, where she also coached girls’ basketball, before she ended at Mundelein College — on the Chicago lakefront — in the 1960s. The school became affiliated with Loyola in 1991, and Sister Jean was hired to help students with the transition.
In 1994, she was asked to help student basketball players boost their grades — “the booster shooter” she called herself — and later that year, she was named chaplain of the men’s team. The role, she wrote in her memoir, became “the most transformational and transcendent position” of her life.
“Sports are very important because they help develop life skills,” she said. “And during those life skills, you’re also talking about faith and purpose.”
The university said Sister Jean is survived by her sister-in-law, Jeanne Tidwell, and her niece, Jan Schmidt.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
