Help us remember our Sisters by sharing a story about a Sister who touched your life, or making a gift in their honor.
Sister Bernice did not consider herself “elderly,” even though she was 101. She insisted on using the stairs from first to fourth floor rather than using the elevator. Her limited vision and difficulty hearing did not deter her from walking the halls and chatting with those she met.
Anonymous donors gifted the Academy of the Holy Angels with a million dollars to renovate the former convent in 2016, with the request that it be named the Sister Genevieve Marie Kelleher Hall in honor of her long service to the Academy. When Genevieve heard this surprising news, she said, “What a humbling honor!”
A wonderful Sister and community member, Theresa also spent 36 years at St. Matthias in Ridgewood, Queens, New York. There she was an excellent teacher and member of the school staff, but by all accounts, she was “a master math teacher.” A colleague said, “She could teach math to anyone.” In a life booklet created with her family, Theresa had written, “All I ever wanted was to be a good Sister and a good teacher.” And she was.
In death, we say our ultimate human yes to God. Trusting in God’s power to bring us to the fullness of life, we conclude our earthly life with an act of worship: in the action of death we proclaim God as God, and ourselves as God’s creatures. We are called by God and sent by the community; we go in joy!
- You Are Sent, Constitution of the School Sisters of Notre Dame
