EmCele Masbaum

EmCele Masbaum
(October 1940 – December 2014)

EmCele Masbaum was born in Chicago but grew up in four Midwestern cities as her father’s job caused the family to move from place to place. By age eleven she was playing the organ in church, and she eventually received a college degree in Organ Performance. It was in Fort Wayne that she met Ned Masbaum, a Medical Student, and the two were soon married. During his medical internship in Indianapolis their first two children were born.

Following Dr. Masbaum’s internship, the family moved to a Naval Submarine Base at Portsmouth, New Hampshire, to fulfill his military obligations. They lived near the Minot Lighthouse and frequently watched its flash sequence of lights, a repetition of one flash, four flashes, and three flashes spaced over 30 seconds and then repeated. Local lore said it spelled out “I LOVE YOU,” thus explaining the meaning of the Roman numerals “I III IV” inscribed on the sides of her large white marble monument, a replica of Michelangelo’s Pieta.

Following Dr. Masbaum’s military service, the family returned to Indianapolis, added another son, and Mrs. Masbaum also began 40 years of caring for her mother in addition to raising a family. She found time to pursue her love of music, having earned a degree in music from Marian College earlier, and composed and published her works through ASCAP (American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers). As she became more devoted to her Catholic faith and teachings, she wrote to Mother Teresa, asking how lay people such as herself could further Mother Teresa’s work. They met in Rome and with Mother Teresa’s guidance, Mrs. Masbaum founded the local Lay Missionaries of Charity in Carmel, IN.