Where someone else might see desperation in the face of homelessness, Sister Anne Halpin sees opportunity.
Where another person might feel pity, or even derision, for those on the streets, Halpin feels the motivation to help.
Over the last five years, out of a small shoebox-sized room in the St. Anastasia Catholic Church, Halpin has quietly tended to the needs of the community s most vulnerable population.
Halpin, who grew up in New Jersey, joined the Dominican Order of nuns in 1959, serving in a number of Catholic churches there before finding her way to St. Augustine in 2004. Her original intent was to come for a short stay to help a family member having health issues, but stay she did.
In 2015, she was named as one of The Record s 10 Who Make a Difference. Among her many volunteer activities during her life, Miss Carrie, as she was referred to by all who knew her, organized an annual Christmas Caroling Galore, which started in 1995, according to the city. Johnson established The Miss Carrie Foundation for Homeless Students, assisted with establishing the Lincolnville 150th anniversary celebration, and helped found the Anniversary to Commemorate the Civil Rights Demonstrations (ACCORD) organization, and served as vice president of the Fort Mose Historical Society.
Last year, commissioners voted to name the street in her honor.
For those who want to learn more about Johnson, the Lincolnville Museum and Cultural Center at 102 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Ave. has an exhibit featuring her life, according to the city. The museum is open from 10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday.
City remembers Voice of Lincolnville by renaming street in her honor
Historic City News subscribers are invited to join City officials in St Augustine on Saturday, February 20, at 12:00 noon, at the corner of Bravo Street and Weeden Street in Lincolnville for an unveiling ceremony honoring Carrie Johnson, lovingly remembered as the Voice of “Lincolnville”. During its Monday January 13, 2020 meeting, the St Augustine City Commission voted to celebrate Johnson’s life by renaming Bravo Street (between Riberia Street and Sanford Street) to “Carrie Johnson Way”.
The 83-year-old known as “Miss Carrie” to almost everyone who knew her, passed away at 7:00 a.m., November 27, 2018. St Augustine was Carrie Johnson’s hometown, she was born here on February 28, 1935. She lived in Miami for many years, raising a family and working as a teacher’s aide, until Hurricane Andrew struck in August 1992. The Category 5 storm devastated the area where she was living. She retu