Calling it recognition for all the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, the co-founder of the international drag nun philanthropic group unveiled Saturday the San Francisco city street named in her honor as Sister Vish-Knew Way.
It coincided with the group's annual Easter Weekend celebrations and came 43 years after she first manifested the Sisters with a few friends."Even the Catholic Church called it Holy Saturday," joked Sister Vish-Knew, sporting a black-and-white ensemble with a circular headpiece forming a silver halo above her.She added that the street sign "is a stamp of approval for the Sisters." Referring to the war in Ukraine and the global assault against LGBTQ rights, she added, "The world needs us now more than they ever did." The commemorative renaming of Alert Alley between Dolores and Landers streets marks the first time a member of the Sisters has been honored in such a way.
The new signage can be found at both ends of the narrow alleyway a short walk from the Archdiocese of San Francisco's Mission Dolores Basilica and the historic Misión San Francisco de Asís."It feels so amazing.
It just makes me very happy and proud," Sister Roma told the Bay Area Reporter. "I owe my life to Vish. I wouldn't be who I am today, none of us would be, without Vish."Roma, now serving as the local order's Mistress of Novices to assist new aspirants, first joined the Sisters in 1987 two years after she had moved to San Francisco.