Author: Mileana Burmesch

Luxembourg – Minnesota Heritage Celebration: A Marnach House Fundraiser

By Larry Kirch, LACS member

Luxembourg heritage was celebrated in fine fashion with a day-long event on Saturday, May 9, 2026 at the Assisi Heights Spirituality Center in Rochester, Minnesota. The celebration was hosted by the Sisters of St. Francis, the Elba Luxembourg Heritage Society, the Luxembourg Ambassador to the United States, Nicole Bintner-Bakshian and Kristin Speltz, Honorary Consul to Luxembourg for Minnesota.

A beautiful spring day at Assisi Heights was the most perfect place to celebrate and honor our Luxembourg families, friends, heritage and history. Assisi Heights, home to the Sisters of St Francis and founded in Rochester in 1877 by Luxembourger, Sister Mary Alfred (Marie Catherine) Moes along with her birth sister, Sister Barbara (Catherine) Moes. The two sisters, were natives of Remich, Luxembourg which is along the scenic Mosel River in the southeast corner of Luxembourg. Sister Alfred, her sister and 23 other Franciscan nuns came from Joliet, Illinois and founded St. Mary’s Hospital with Dr. William Worrall Mayo in 1889.

Over 110 attendees were treated to a welcome reception hosted by Honorary Consul to Hawaii Jean Claude Drui, official welcoming remarks from the Luxembourg Ambassador to the United States Nicole Bitner-Bakshain and Sister Tierny Trueman, Congregational Minister/President. Master of Ceremonies for the festivities was none other than the Honorary “Grand Duke” Michael Calteaux, representing the Luxembourg American Cultural Society of Belgium, Wisconsin. Following the welcoming ceremonies, a spectacular “Luxembourg-esque” luncheon by Chef Eric Krochta was served in the main dining hall along with fine Luxembourg wines donated by Ansay International. Assisi Heights Chef Eric Krochta prepared the delectable luncheon from recipes in a Luxembourg cookbook that Ambassador Bitner-Bakshian gifted to the Franciscan Sisters on her visit in 2025.

After lunch, attendees gathered in the Auditorium Hall to pay tribute to Rollingstone, Minnesota’s Dr. Mary Nilles who was an author, historian and champion for the Marnach House and our collective Luxembourg heritage. A short TV interview with Mary from the early 1990s hosted by Joyce Woodworth began the celebration of Mary. In the interview, Mary described the history and importance of the Marnach House to Minnesota, SE Minnesota and the Whitewater Valley, the country of Luxembourg and all those of Luxembourg heritage. The Marnach House is listed in the National Register of Historic Places and Mary described as “one of a kind in Minnesota and Winona County.” “113. History: Marnach House” by Joyce Woodworth

Nancy (Mauer) Roberts from the Elba Luxembourg Heritage Society gave a heartfelt tribute to the Franciscan Sisters, Mother Alfred Moes, Luxembourg Heritage, the Marnach House and Mary Nilles’ love for the Marnach House and what it represents to all Luxembourgers.

Nancy remarked “today, we reflect on legacy, on the people and traditions that shaped this region and continue to guide us and within that larger story, there is a quiet and powerful symbol, one that sits just a few miles from here…that place is the Nicolas Marnach House.” Setting the scene in the Whitewater Valley, Nancy told the group “If you were to walk through the hills, near Elba, Minnesota, you might come across a modest stone structure, tucked into the landscape, almost hidden by time. It is not grand. It does not call attention to itself. But what it holds is extraordinary.” “What makes the Marnach House so meaningful is not that it survived but that the people chose to save it.”

The Grand Duchy of Luxembourg along with Luxembourgers, including Mary and descendants of Luxembourgers in Winona County, all chose to save the Marnach House. Nancy went on to say “today, for more than four decades, members of the Elba community and the surrounding community have taken the responsibility for taking care of this site, they maintain it, they protect it and most importantly, they bring it to life.” The work is on-going and it still requires everyone to protect the past and the future of the Marnach House. The funds raised as part of the Luxembourg-Minnesota Heritage Celebration will directly support the Elba Luxembourg Heritage Society continue their work to maintain, protect and bring the Nicolas Marnach House to life.

Remarks and joyous memories were given by Mary Nilles’ nephew, Luke, where he spoke of how Mary was always keenly interested in him and his family and what was happening in Rollingstone. Luke unveiled and read the inscription of a bronze relief plaque that was created in Mary’s honor and which will be placed on the Marnach House. R.I.P.: Mary Nilles | Winona Journal

For more information about the Marnach House visit the Elba-Luxembourg Heritage Society Facebook page at: MARNACH HOUSE | Facebook or Nicholas Marnach House – Wikipedia

Over 115 people registered for the event which featured a wonderful presentation about Mother Alfred and her legacy of service to the Rochester area and the Franciscan Sisters by Sisters Tierny Trueman and Ramona Miller.

The contribution of Franciscan “Daughters of Luxembourg” to Minnesota’s Luxembourg heritage was resplendent with a self-guided walking tour of The Sisters of Saint Francis at nearby Calvary Cemetery, where 67 Franciscan Sisters of Luxembourg ancestry are interred.

The afternoon celebration continued with a panel discussion about Mother Alfred Moes and the Franciscan Sisters’ contributions to Rochester and SE Minnesota, guided walking tours of Assisi Heights and its beautiful chapel, Celebration of the Mass by (Luxembourger) Fr. John Abts from the La Crosse Diocese along with music from the Franciscan Choir. To cap off a glorious day, the Franciscan Sisters hosted a Luxembourg bouneschlupp and sandwich supper!

Notable attendees to the day’s event included the Luxembourg Ambassador to the U.S., Nicole Bitner-Bakshian, Honorary Consul for Minnesota Kristin Speltz, Honorary Consul for Hawaii Jean Claude Drui, Jeff Raach, Deputy Consul General & Deputy Director, Luxembourg Trade and Investment Office in San Francisco, Jenna Liberatore, Consul, Luxembourg Embassy in Washington, D.C. and Kim Norton, 47th Mayor of Rochester, Minnesota.

Numerous midwestern Luxembourg heritage organizations and their members attended the and include George Jones, Vice President, Luxembourg Brotherhood of America based in Chicago, IL., members of the Luxembourg American Cultural Society, the Rollingstone Luxembourg Heritage Museum and Society, the Luxembourg American Descendants Society of the La Crosse, Wisconsin Area, Luxembourg Heritage Society of Southern Minnesota, Twin Cities Luxembourg American Society, and over 100 proud descendants of immigrants from the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg,

Kristin Speltz, Honorary Consul to Luxembourg, Minnesota, and Nancy (Mauer) Roberts contributed to this article.

Larry Kirch’s great grandfather Michel Kirch immigrated from Greiveldange, Luxembourg to the Port Washington, WI, area then to Rollingstone, MN and settled nearby on Oak Ridge and farmed 734 acres overlooking the Whitewater River Valley, only a few miles from the Marnach House.