Panama gives its top honor to a Maryknoll Sister who cares for the most vulnerable.

Even in the most helpful of families, taking care of your aging mom or dad can be rewarding yet challenging. Imagine, though, caring for almost 100 seniors.

Sister Gerri Brake faces that reality every day.  She oversees residential care for our many elderly members. Sister Gerri has been preparing for her new ministry ever since she began an earlier role in Panama. She lived through the last violent days of the regime of General Manuel Noriega.

During the initial violence 21 years ago, people took refuge at Panama's Gorgas Hospital and Balboa High School.

Sister Gerri and five other Maryknoll Sisters worked non-stop during the fighting. They coordinated food and medical supplies, served as translators, and cared for the elderly.

All seniors should have a peaceful place to retire to, like Sr. Gerri's New Life Center in Panama.

After the Panama crisis, Sister Gerri collaborated respond to the immediate needs of 100,000 people. She saw to the needs of the sick and elderly because they were among the most vulnerable.

Comforting the elderly in Panama became a calling for Sister Gerri. She originally wanted to be a pastoral counselor. But on the morning when the violence broke out, she stayed in Balboa, attending to victims forced from their homes. Sister Gerri discovered older people who were left with nothing.

Hundreds petitioned Panama to honor Sr. Gerri, shown with Vice President Juan Carlos Varela.

After months of hard work, Sister Gerri was able to fulfill a great dream: to establish a home for the elderly in Panama. These seniors needed safety and community. In Balboa, Sister Gerri’s New Life Center opened to welcome 80 elderly people who now had a home.

Sister Gerri will forever have a home in Panama, too. In early July, Panama’s democratically-elected government honored Sister Gerri with the Vasco Nunez de Balboa Award. Named for the Spanish explorer who crossed the Isthmus of Panama in 1513, the Balboa Award is the country’s highest civilian honor.

At a ceremony in Panama on July 2, Sister Gerri accepted the award from Vice President Juan Carlos Varela, who’s also Panama’s foreign minister. The award cited Sister Gerri's "unconditional and total dedication" in her work with the most vulnerable in Panama.

Sister Gerri’s philosophy of life is simple but powerful: “Whenever one shares, one receives more. My life is much happier when I am sharing and giving to others.”

Almost 400 men and women in Panama petitioned the government on Sister Gerri’s behalf.