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Sister
Dorothy Stang |
In Memoriam
1918 – 2006 Sister Miriam Joseph had a mobile tutoring service and drove all over Hamilton to the homes of her students when they could not get to school. Sister Miriam Joseph Reichert, SNDdeN, died June 1 at Mount Notre Dame Health Center at the age of 87. A native of Dayton, she was a Sister of Notre Dame de Namur for 70 years. Sister Miriam Joseph was a classroom teacher for nearly 62 years. She taught first grade in Hamilton at Saint Veronica and Saint Stephen. In Dayton, she taught first or second grades at Saint James, Saint Agnes, Holy Family, Saint Helen and Our Lady of the Rosary. In Cincinnati, she taught at Saint Pius and Saint Boniface and was also a member of the foster grandparent program in both schools.
1918 – 2006 Sister Agnes Marie devoted her life in service to her Sisters, baking her famous hot cross buns for the Community just weeks before she died. Sister Agnes Marie Dozier, SNDdeN, died May 28 at Mount Notre Dame Health Center at the age of 87. A native of Cincinnati, she was a Sister of Notre Dame de Namur for 70 years. Shortly after professing vows, Sister Agnes Marie began her long and very devoted service as a dietary aid and seamstress. Her ministry took her to various Notre Dame Communities including Villa Park, Illinois; Mt. Notre Dame, Reading; St. James Wyoming and the Summit in Cincinnati. In Columbus, she served the Community at Maryhurst and Rich Street, and at Holy Rosary and Villa Julienne in Dayton.
Sister Mary Louise McBride, SNDdeN, (formerly Sister Mary Kevin) died February 14 at Mount Notre Dame Health Center at the age of 84. A native of Dayton, she was a Sister of Notre Dame de Namur for 67 years. Sister Mary Louise began her almost 50 years as an educator at St. John the Baptist School in Cincinnati. From there she taught at Sts. Peter and Paul, Cardinal Pacelli, St. Xavier, St. Agnes and St. George in Cincinnati. Sister also taught primary children at St. Patrick in Columbus, Ascension and Holy Family in Dayton, and St. Eugene in Detroit. In addition, she taught primary grades and CCD classes at St. Peter Canisius School in Chicago and served as a tutor and foster grandparent to students at Corryville Catholic in Cincinnati.
Sister Rosemary Donovan, SNDdeN, (formerly Sister St. James) died December 21 at Mount Notre Dame Health Center at the age of 89. A native of Dayton, she was a Sister of Notre Dame de Namur for 71 years. Sister Rosemary was an educator for more than 55 years, beginning at St. Agnes School in Dayton and later at Holy Family and St. James in Dayton, St. Patrick in Columbus, St. Eugene in Detroit, Most Holy Trinity in Phoenix and St. John the Apostle in Villa Park, Illinois. She also served as a reading specialist at St. Helen School in Dayton.
When people talk about Sister Helen McDermott (formerly Sister St.Thomas), the words "meticulous," "brilliant" and "accomplished educator" often surface first. She was known for creating the kinds of programs religious educators needed to deal with new insights into Scripture as well as the documents of Vatican II. They were detailed and complete in their explanations, easy to follow and extremely practical. Sister Helen was also known for being slightly ahead of her time. For example, she was one of the first American women religious to work in Iraq when, in 1965, she became the Director of Aspirants at a monastery in Bagdad. She later explained that this "mission occurred because God had something up his (her) sleeve." Sister was among the first women to study at Lumen Vitae International Center for Religious Studies in Belgium. Her studies at the prestigious institution produced a series of publications for catechists. For younger children she wrote an article on the Mass entitled "A Multiple-Sense Approach to the Sunday Gospel". Sister Helen wrote for The Catholic Educator and The Catholic Journal. For Our Little Messenger, she created a series of articles on the Sacraments, using the story of St. Julie’s baptism to explain that Sacrament. One of the last pieces of writing Sister Helen did was her entry for a contest sponsored by the Public Library of Cincinnati. At the age of 93, she won second place for her view on "How Libraries Light Up My Life." She began her ministry at Holy Cross School in Columbus in 1932 and taught primary grades at St. John the Baptist, St. George and Mt. Notre Dame in Cincinnati and Immaculate Conception in Dayton. She also taught secondary school at Julienne High School in Dayton, Mt. Notre Dame in Cincinnati and in Columbus. She served as religious education coordinator and resource person at eight parishes in Dayton. Sister spent nearly 40 of her 75 years of religious life serving in Dayton parishes and schools. Sister Helen McDermott died March 10 at Mount Notre Dame Health Center in Reading, at the age of 94.
Sister Margaret Wessels (formerly Sister Ignatius of the Sacred Heart) was the daughter of a 4 ft. 8 in. woman who stoked furnaces to support her family. That may be all anyone needs to know to understand the source of Sister Margaret’s legendary determination and strength. Sister Margaret, too, worked to help her family. Before joining the Notre Dame community, her first job was as an accountant at a furniture store in Cincinnati. After that she worked as an office manager in an automotive parts store. . Later Sister Margaret said it was during those years that she learned to take charge – an attribute that came in handy in her later ministries. She also learned, "There’s something better in life than making a few dollars. That ‘something better’ is God". Sister Margaret taught young people for 34 years in Notre Dame Schools, including those in Calumet City and Chicago, Illinois; Columbus, Dayton, Cincinnati, Sharonville, Wyoming and Lebanon, Ohio. Her last teaching ministry for six years, was at St. John the Evangelist School in Deer Park, Ohio. She liked it there so much, that she stayed on as school librarian for nine more years. She also managed assignments to Bishop Hartley High School in Columbus, St. Xavier Commercial High School in Cincinnati and Mount Notre Dame High School, Reading. Sister Margaret was a master baker. Sisters and friends will long remember her famous home-baked pecan rolls. Among the few possessions that Sister kept was a collection of her favorite recipes over the years. Two years ago, Sister Margaret wrote a brief summary of her long life. "There hasn’t been anything really outstanding about my ministry," she wrote, " but all along I’ve felt that I can go to God with any of my problems. If He doesn’t remedy it, at least He gives me the satisfaction of knowing it’s going to be all right. Most of all, through all these years, I’m grateful for His goodness to me." Sister Margaret died October 17 at Mount Notre Dame Health Center in Reading, at the age of 94.
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Sister
Miriam Joseph Reichert
Sister
Agnes Marie Dozier
Sister
Mary Louise McBride
Sister
Rosemary Donovan
Brilliant
and Always Slightly Ahead of her Time
A
Woman of Legendary Determination and Strength