Mayor Declares Today 'Sister Jean Schmidt' Day in San Francisco

Today is a special day for Sister Jean Dolores Schmidt, the 98-year-old Catholic sister and San Francisco native who has drawn national attention for her role as the face of University of Loyola-Chicago's men's basketball team.

And it's not just because her beloved team, the Holy Ramblers, are facing Michigan in the Final Four of the men's college basketball tournament today.

It's also because San Francisco Mayor Mark Farrell announced today that he has declared today as the 2018 Sister Jean Schmidt Day.

"As a born and raised Jesuit-educated San Franciscan, it is my absolute honor to proclaim March 31, 2018 Sister Jean Schmidt Day in the City and County of San Francisco," Farrell said today.

In a tweet, the Holy Ramblers thanked Farrell for his support.

Schmidt attended St. Paul High School, a catholic school in San Francisco's Noe Valley neighborhood, as well as the Most Holy Redeemer Grammar School at a catholic church in the city's Castro neighborhood.

According to the New York Times, Schmidt was a teacher in California for many years before moving to Chicago in 1961 to teach and then serve as administrator at Mundelein College, an all-women's school founded and run by the Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Today, she is the Holy Rambler's chaplain and leads the team in prayer before every game. The Times reports that before Nov. 14, when she fell and broke her hip, she had only missed two games since 1994. Her hip injury caused her to miss eight more, but she watched every game on her iPad.

Farrell said Schmidt has been the most loyal, if not celebrated, supporter of the Holy Ramblers.

Schmidt has become so celebrated that she's her bobblehead best-selling bobblehead in the National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum's history. The hall of fame and museum says it sold 5,000 Sister Jean bobbleheads in 48 hours.

The mayor said the sister's mixture of scouting and spiritual advice guided the underdog Holy Ramblers to today's Final Four matchup against the University of Michigan in San Antonio.

"Today, I am a Holy Rambler and will be rooting for them to defeat Michigan and become the lowest-seeded team ever to make a national championship game," Farrell said.