Not many people would put themselves in the middle of something like the Civil Rights movement. But Sister Ruth Snyder isn’t like many people.

Doing the smallest acts of kindness and helping others on a daily basis is how Snyder lives her life.

Snyder, a nun at Queen of Angels Church in Austin, grew up in Mower County and has always had ties to the community. However, she spent many years away becoming the person she is now.

Teaching is where a lot of it started. While teaching college courses in Winona, she was presented with an opportunity to make a bigger difference than she was already making.

Snyder took a job as an exchange teacher in Atlanta, teaching at a black university during the civil rights movement. She trusted her students, and they looked out for her — telling her when she would be safe.

“Sometimes the feeling was pretty scary,” she said. “But I was never afraid.”

The opportunity to follow the sisters and help others always took her to new places — after several years in Atlanta, she taught at another black university in Charlotte.

Because she had served the Catholic church for many years, the opportunity to choose her destination arose. So after six years in Atlanta and five in Charlotte, she went to Peru.

Missionaries had already been there, spreading knowledge of medicine, agriculture and the word of God.

For 21 years, Snyder worked in the mountain towns and villages of South America.

“I did a little of everything,” she said.

The missionaries she lived with acted as doctors and farmers — because none were present. Snyder’s knowledge of English, chemistry and Christianity helped serve people who didn’t have many resources to help themselves.

She remembers when missionaries gave them six tons of potatoes to plant, but they had to teach the locals how to grow them, use fertilizer and repel insects.

Snyder has been back in Minnesota for years now, but she’ll never forget Peru. “I just remember all the beautiful people and dedicated people when we were there,” she said.

Part of Peru came back with Snyder, too. By helping the Peruvians and living with them for years, she became fluent in Spanish. Now she uses that skill to help out many people in Austin.

“She’s very, very Bilingual,” said Julie Bjorge, who sees Snyder on a daily basis. “She’s so bilingual that she sometimes starts speaking Spanish and forgets who she’s talking to.”

That skill alone keeps her busy enough to help people of Austin fill out forms, talk to doctors, get to appointments and, eventually, learn English. Everywhere she goes, she keeps her planner and address book handy. With a list of more than 200 contacts, she has to.

“She certainly puts a lot of miles on that car,” Bjorge said.

Most of all, Snyder realizes the things she does are just simple things.

“I’m just a listening ear for people … pray for them, pray with them,” she said.

But when Snyder received this year’s individual human rights award for her contributions to the community, she said, “I was humbled by it. It says that people who do small things can be recognized and appreciated. It might encourage others to do the same.”