April 24, 1954 — January 5, 2026
Sister Mary Veronica, Laurice Ann Golbinec, was born on April 22, 1954 in Dearborn, MI to Owen James Jeakle and Barbara Jean Feezar. She was the first of four girls, followed by Adele, Mary Ann and Kathleen.
Laurice attended St. Mel Grade School from the third through the seventh grade, where she encountered the Felician Sisters for the first time. She felt the gentle call of God as she assisted the sisters in simple duties at the convent.
Her father passed away when she was 7½ years old, and five years later her mother moved the family to Toledo, Ohio, marrying Laurice’s stepfather, Albert Golbinec, who legally adopted Laurice.
In Ohio, Laurice attended a school staffed by the Sisters of Notre Dame. The Lord’s gentle call was felt even more intensely and she entered the Aspirancy program of the sisters, attending high school at the Academy while living with the Sisters of Notre Dame.
Laurice was an aspirant for three years and in August 1972, entered the Postulancy of the Sisters of Notre Dame. Since the Order was primarily a teaching order, and Laurice was intent upon following a medical profession, she left the Sisters of Notre Dame at the age of 20 and applied to the Licensed Practical Nurse Training Center in Toledo, Ohio, working in a hospital as an LPN. She moved back to Michigan and worked as an LPN for the next ten years.
Her youngest sister, Kathy, died unexpectedly in June of 1990 at the age of 23 and Laurice struggled with her religious beliefs for several years. In 1998 she moved back to Toledo. By this time, her stepfather and grandfather had died and she helped move her grandmother from her home in Lincoln Park to Toledo. She accepted a job in a home care agency, and later on in a Jewish Nursing Home. During that time, a friend joined Laurice and they started their own Legal Nurse Consulting Business.
The year 2000 was a turning point in the life of Laurice as she returned to the Catholic Church. It was the year that John Paul II declared as one of forgiveness. It wasn’t long after that Laurice started attending daily Mass and learned how to pray the Christian prayer. The Rosary was recited daily, and she joined her parish choir.
Once again, Laurice started to hear the gentle voice of God prompting her to enter religious life. The discernment process took a while, and Laurice continued to visit her aunt, Sister Mary Carolita, at the Felician Sister’s motherhouse in Livonia. She was attracted to the sisters’ reverence and daily commitment to Eucharistic Adoration, their prayerfulness and humanness. She made an appointment to talk with the Vocation Director and knew right then that she felt the tug of God calling her to this religious life. She entered the Felician Congregation on January 6, 2002.
Following First Vows, Laurice, now known as Sister Mary Veronica, was offered many opportunities to practice her nursing skills. At St. Francis Convent in Saginaw she was the Charge Nurse; at St. Michael in Livonia, School Nurse; at St. Joseph Convent in Livonia, Provincial House Nurse; at St. Thecla, School Nurse and Pastoral Care; at the Central Convent, Co-Director for Vocations in the North American Provinces; and later, Convent Nurse in the Central Convent; Pastoral Associate at Our Lady of Mt. Carmel in Wyandotte (name later changed to Our Lady of the Scapular), and Local Minister.
Sister Veronica’s health steadily began to decline. She was transferred to Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary Care Center in 2017. Renal failure necessitated dialysis treatments for several years.
On December 31, 2025, Sister Veronica was admitted into the intensive care unit at Trinity Health Hospital, Livonia where she rapidly declined.
Sister Joyce Marie Van de Vyver, local minister, Sister Mary Angela Parkins, vicar, and Sister Mary Josepha Van Camp recited the vows at Sister Veronica’s bedside late in the evening of January 4, 2026. The sisters were joined by long-time friend Sister Mary Alexanne Rutecki (and Sister Mary DeSales Herman on the loudspeaker phone) for several decades of the rosary. Phone calls of love were also placed by Sister Veronica’s sister Adele and brother-in-law Dr. Paul Eleazer in Utah, as well as several nieces and nephews from Texas.
At 2:41 a.m. on January 5, 2026, Sister Mary Veronica Golbinec offered her final soft breath to the Lord.
Thursday, January 8, sisters, family and friends gathered in Presentation Chapel after supper for recitation of the Rosary and sharing of memories from Sister’s life. The Mass of Christian Burial was offered on Friday, January 9, 2026 at 10:30 a.m. Rev. Gary Michalik, chaplain, was the celebrant. Interment was in Holy Sepulchre Cemetery, Southfield, Michigan.
