By Cristina Cabrera Jarro -

MIAMI | Cuban-born Sister Olga Gomez, a member of the Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul, often greeted visitors to the National Shrine of Our Lady of Charity in Miami, known as ‘La Ermita,’ with a smile that was full of kindness, and a little mischief. She believed so much in expressing the joy of the Lord that aside from verbally reminding others that God loves them, she even recorded the message in her voicemail saying, “Sonríe, Dios te ama.” (“Smile, God loves you.”)

Sister Olga was 77 years old when she suddenly got sick on a retreat in Havana, Cuba. Prior to her passing, her family in Miami said goodbye via FaceTime. Father Matthew Gomez, her grandnephew, blessed her from afar. She died Nov. 8, 2024.

Father Gomez believes that, in her heart, Sister Olga wanted to die in Cuba.

“Her vocation was born in Cuba; she served her entire life in Cuba. And while she lived here in Miami with her order and her family, her heart was in Cuba,” he said. 

Among the many things he will remember about his aunt, her joy is one he will carry fondly.

“At my ordination, I asked for the grace to be joyful, like her, and to be a joyful priest,” said Father Gomez, who serves as dean of the propaedeutic program at St. John Vianney College Seminary in Miami.

Sister Olga Gomez was born Oct. 1, 1947, to Jose Ramon Gomez and Olga Jañez in Alquizar, a town outside Havana.

She had a brother, Jose Ramon “Mongui” Gomez, who later married her childhood best friend, Lourdes. The couple had three boys: Jose, Fernando, and Manny. Fernando Gomez, father of Father Matthew Gomez, remembers when the family said good-bye to his aunt Olga on October 3, 1977, as she entered the postulant stage of her vocation with the Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul in Cuba.

“My brothers and I were kids, I was seven or eight years old. It was her first time leaving home to live somewhere else, and we took her to the convent,” he recalled.

On June 8, 1978, she entered seminary formation. “We celebrated that day every year,” said Gomez, who called his aunt’s vocation a joyful one.

Sister Olga professed first vows in Sept. 1983 at Immaculate Conception Cathedral of Havana. She dedicated much of her life to serving the poor and the sick, working at hospital such as de Paula, La Edad de Oro Psychopedagogical Medical Center, and in a hospital in the Santuario Rincon de San Lazaro, where she also cared for her mother, Lourdes. She also served in the Cuban communities of Bejucal, Madruga, and Baracoa.

“She became a nun to serve in Cuba. She became a sister to be in the island with her people,” said Gomez.

In May 2011, Sister Olga left Cuba with a “heavy heart” when was relocated to Miami. Since then, she has returned to Cuba every year for her annual retreat.

In 2016, she was sent to Puerto Rico to serve, but two years later, she returned to Miami and worked at the Shrine of Our Lady of Charity. There she ministered to visitors, many of whom were Cuban immigrants.

“That ministry of welcoming at La Ermita came to her as a blessing. She loved walking around the property and would love sitting in El Malecon and talking to people,” Gomez said.

He believes that Sister Olga passed her love for Jesus Christ to all who knew her, becoming the “wise and funny Cuban aunt” to those with whom she spoke. She could make people laugh, but she could also be very tough and strong of character when needed. And like her brother Jose, she taught, not only her family, but everyone she met, that one hour a week for the Lord is not enough for a healthy, spiritual life.

“You have to always look for something else to do. If you have nothing else to do, go to Mass, and when you’re done with Mass, go to Holy Hour. But don’t let a week pass when the only thing you did was go to Mass on Sunday,” said Gomez.

Sister Olga always shared positive messages with her family, reminding them to be happy and to trust the Lord with their joys and challenges. When they couldn’t visit her, they made it a point to call her at least once a week.

“I called her my spiritual director, and she called me hers,” Gomez said.

The Gomez family is grateful for the outpouring of love and appreciation for Sister Olga, or “Sor Ti” as she was called by many. A nickname given to her by Father Matthew when he was a child, it is short for “tía” or “aunt” in Spanish. Years later, Sor Olga remained Sor Ti.

With the family permission, Sister Olga was buried Nov. 9, 2024, in Cementerio Cristobal Colón, Havana’s main cemetery, in a mausoleum belonging to the Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul.

A Mass will be celebrated for her in Miami on Monday, November 18, 2024 at the National Shrine of Our Lady of Charity, located at 3609 S Miami Ave, Miami, FL 33133.