Roller-skating nuns cruise around Corpus Christi, Texas

Meet the sisters who love strapping on their in-line skates.

ByABC News
August 14, 2017, 12:38 PM

— -- In-line skating was a habit that a couple of nuns thought they might have to give up when they took their vows of obedience, chastity and poverty.

"When I entered, I left my Rollerblades at home, thinking, 'I'm not going to use them,'" Sister Caritas Sparke told ABC affiliate KIII.

But Sparke was mistaken.

PHOTO: Sister Mary Elezibaeth Albers smiles as she cruises along the coastline.
Sister Mary Elezibaeth Albers smiles as she cruises along the coastline.

The SOLT Sisters — named after the acronym for their church, the Society of Our Lady of the Most Holy Trinity — cruise around the Bayfront area of Corpus Christi, Texas, and certainly attract a lot of attention from visitors and residents alike.

"Most often, you get a shocked look," Sparke told KIII.

Weekly, these holy rollers wear their full habit, strap on their in-line skates, coast down the coast and pose for pictures when asked.

PHOTO: Sister Mary Elezibaeth Albers and Sister Caritas Sparke stop to pose for a selfie while in-line skating.
Sister Mary Elezibaeth Albers and Sister Caritas Sparke stop to pose for a selfie while in-line skating.

Even professional skaters have taken notice.

"We did meet a group of roller derby women ... and it was actually really cool," Sister Mary Elezibaeth Albers told KIII. "They invited us to their roller derby match."

Albers and Sparke hope their skating around shows a different side of convent life from what most people are used to.

"I think they think we're probably pretty cool," Sparke said, laughing.