SISTER MARY CARITAS
Those 14 languages Sister Mary Caritas learned sure came in handy. A 1941 UNO graduate, Caritas spent all of her adult life serving others through her work with the Missionary Sisters of the Society of Mary. That included time as a teacher in Yugoslavia, the Fiji Islands, Samoa, Jamaica and elsewhere. She also worked in nursing taking care of leprosy patients, served on parole boards and counseled prisoners. Her language abilities should come as no surprise given how she began her studies at then- Omaha University. Caritas started classes in 1939 as Dragica Zaplotnik after coming to the United States from Belgrade, Yugoslavia. She had only six weeks of English lessons before coming to campus, putting herself through school working at a meat packing plant. Caritas took her religious name upon becoming a nun in 1944 despite the objection of her father, who had joined Yugoslavia’s communist government. He legally disowned his daughter when she joined the Society of Mary. The UNO Alumni Association recognized her dedication by issuing a Citation for Alumni Achievement award to her in 1982. She remains the only religious to have earned the award.