Pacific Palisades resident Anita Finie, prodigious volunteer in the service of the elderly and children, received the Papal Honor of Dame Commander of St. Gregory the Great in a service at the Cathedral of Our Lady of Angels in early March. The honor, bestowed by Pope Benedict XVI, was given by Cardinal Roger Mahony in recognition of Finie’s service in the parish, the archdiocese and the civic community. The Order of St. Gregory the Great was established in 1831 by Pope Gregory XVI as a way of honoring people of ‘unblemished character who had promoted the interests of society, the Church and the Holy See.’ In 1994, ten women in the Los Angeles Archdiocese were received into the Order as Dames of Saint Gregory, the first women in the world to be so honored. Finie is a volunteer par excellence who claims memberships in four parishes, including Corpus Christi, St. Monica, where she serves on the baptismal committee; Our Lady of the Bright Mount Polish Church, where she was married; and the Cathedral. At Corpus, she coordinates the visitation ministry to three area convalescent hospitals. On Sunday, Finie and her committee of five parish volunteers take Communion to hospital residents. ‘We say prayers; some have Alzheimer’s so we’re lucky to make the sign of the cross and give Communion,’ Finie says. Finie grew up in Poland through World War II and suffered the devastating loss of her home, possessions and family. Her sister was shot by the Nazis; her brother and father died at Auschwitz. She and her mother survived German occupation and immigrated in 1947 to the United States, where she met her husband Philip. The couple raised two sons and lived on Catalina Island until 1974, when they moved to Pacific Palisades. Finie’s volunteer work revolves around youth and education. ‘I stress education, I support education because that is how young people’s character develops,’ she says. She earned a nursing degree in Poland and another from St. Joseph’s College in Maine, where she sponsors a nursing scholarship. For three years, Finie was involved in Child Help USA, focusing on abused children. Along the way, Finie became active in the PTA and the Palisades Woman’s Club. Despite her recent honors’last year she was honored with the Cardinal’s Award’Finie remains humble. ‘In my mind, I could always do more,’ she says. ‘ I find so much more satisfaction in giving than receiving, and I expect nothing in return.’
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