Obituaries

Sister Cecilia Vandal, M.M., Maryknoll Sister of 80 years, Dies at 98

Posted on March 31, 2026

Ossining, N.Y., March 24, 2026 ── Sister Cecilia Vandal, M.M., a Maryknoll Sister of 80 years known for her joyful and gentle presence, died on March 6, 2026. She was 98, and passed in the company of her sister, Alice, and her Maryknoll family.

Sr. Cecilia was born on May 22, 1928, to Estelle Nordin and Leonard Vandal, in Bottineau, N.D. She grew up in a large and loving family, with seven sisters ­­— Rose Marie, Theresa, Marguerite, Helen, Alice, Grace and Eugenia — and five brothers — Edward, Lawrence, Norman, Aime and Michael. Sr. Cecilia is survived by two of her sisters, Alice and Grace.

Sr. Cecilia graduated from Notre Dame Academy High School in Willow City, N.D., in 1946 and entered Maryknoll that same year on Oct. 5. Sr. Cecilia professed her First Vows in 1949, and her Final Vows in 1952. She went on to receive her Bachelor of Education degree from Rogers College of Maryknoll, N.Y., in 1953.

Her first mission brought Sr. Cecilia to New York’s Chinatown, where she served as a teacher from 1952 until 1954. Three years later, she would embark on her first overseas mission to Chile, where she worked as a teacher, principal and pastoral counselor at Maryknoll schools in Santiago, Pemuco and Talcahuano Huachipato. She also served as the regional coordinator of the Maryknoll Sisters Chile region for four years.

In 1979, Sr. Cecilia returned to New York to join the Maryknoll Sisters Mission Institute. Then, from 1982 until 1988, she served as a pastoral associate for parishes in Bottineau County, N.D., to assist in liturgies and religious education. During this time, Sr. Cecilia also provided aid to her family and aging parents at home.

Sr. Cecilia was assigned to El Salvador in 1989 to serve within the Soyapango parish communities, before moving to the small town of Santa Cruz, Analquito, to establish a church there. Sr. Cecilia served in the Maryknoll Sisters Center Rogers Community as Co-Coordinator from 2004 until 2007, before returning to El Salvador’s Soyapango. She was welcomed back “home” once again by the community, and served with the Council for the Deanery and the Evangelization Committee.

After retiring to the Maryknoll Sisters Center, Sr. Cecilia found great joy in cooking, gardening, playing Scrabble and spending time with her fellow sisters until her passing.

A wake for Sr. Cecilia was held on March 19, 2026, in the Annunciation Chapel of the Maryknoll Sisters Center in Ossining, N.Y. A Memorial Mass was said on March 20, 2026, also in the Annunciation Chapel.

Sister Patricia Gallogly, M.M., Maryknoll Sister of 75 years, Dies at 93

Posted on March 23, 2026

Ossining, N.Y., March 13, 2026 ── Sister Patricia Gallogly, M.M., a Maryknoll sister of 75 years known for her adaptability and commitment to justice, died on March 1, 2026, surrounded by friends and staff at Maryknoll. She was 93 

Sr. Patricia was born on February 15, 1933, in the Bronx, New York, to Joseph and Rose O’Rourke Gallogly. Her parents and sister, Peg, predeceased her; she is survived by her sister, Kathleen.

Sr. Patricia was baptized at St. Jerome’s Parish, and received her high school diploma from the St. Simon Stock School. She would go on to complete her bachelor’s degree in education at the Maryknoll Teachers College in 1960, and attend the Pius X School of Liturgical Music at Manhattanville College.

In 1951, Sr. Patricia entered the Venard Maryknoll Society Community in Clarks Summit, Pa., after being inspired by stories in Maryknoll’s Field Afar Magazine. As she studied theology and missiology, Sr. Patricia’s spark for mission work grew into a flame — she received her first vows on March 7, 1954, and made her final vows six years later to the day, in 1960.

Sr. Patricia’s first mission took her to Africa in 1960, where she taught at the Makoko Girls Primary School for seven years. She also taught at the Musoma Junior High School Seminary for young boys in Tanzania, and at a girls’ high school in Machakos, Kenya. In 1980, she was called back to the Maryknoll Sister Center in Ossining, N.Y., to serve as the orientation director. Sr. Patricia returned to Tanzania once again to serve in the village of Kung’ombe, Bunda, where she taught local women how to knit and sew, while discussing women’s rights with them. She also worked as a health promoter, organizing support groups and trainings amid the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the Msang village and Mwanza. During this process, Sr. Patricia helped develop the Uzima Wellness Center in 2004, where women received medical assistance.

In 2007, Sr. Patricia was called to the Eastern U.S. Region, where she continued her ministry of justice and peace in Yonkers, N.Y. She later became the representative for the Faith and Justice Network in Washington, D.C. From 2017 until 2020, Sr. Patricia served as representative to the Maryknoll Affiliates and Full Circle.

Sr. Patricia returned to the Center in 2019, where she spent time writing about her experiences in mission and keeping in touch with her many friends from Tanzania, until she passed.

A wake for Sr. Patricia was held on March 10, 2026, in the Annunciation Chapel of the Maryknoll Sisters Center in Ossining, N.Y. A memorial Mass was said on March 11, 2026, also in the Annunciation Chapel.

Sister Rose Patrick St. Aubin, M.M., Maryknoll Sister of 80 Years, Dies at 97

Posted on March 16, 2026

Ossining, N.Y., Jan. 15, 2026 ── Sister Rose Patrick St. Aubin, M.M., a Maryknoll Sister known for her strength and immense love for people, died on Jan. 3, 2026. She was 97 and a Maryknoll Sister of 80 years. 

Dolores May St. Aubin was born in Appleton, Wisconsin, to Amos and Mathilda Binon St. Aubin on May 19, 1928. She is pre-deceased by her sister, Carol Jameson, and brother, Patrick St. Aubin. Sr. Rose Patrick is survived by numerous nieces, nephews and in-laws.

Sr. Rose Patrick and her family moved to Akrin, Ohio, where she would graduate from St. Mary’s High School. On Oct. 4, 1946, Sr. Rose Patrick entered the congregation at the Maryknoll Sister Center in Ossining, N.Y., determined to pursue foreign missions as her sole ambition. She made her first vows on April 6, 1949, and her final vows on April 6, 1952, in Likiep, Marshall Islands.

Sr. Rose Patrick studied at the Maryknoll Teachers College, before completing her bachelor’s degree at Chaminade College in Hawai’i, in 1978.

In 1950, Sr. Rose Patrick was called to the Marshall Islands of Micronesia for a brand-new Maryknoll mission. She started teaching first grade and began what would become her six-decades-long commitment to the people, Church and education of the Marshall Islands.

Sr. Rose Patrick dedicated herself to education development, fulfilling an immense need for teacher training. She also took part in initiating the Outer Island Ministries in the remote atolls of Likiep, Jaluit, Arno and others. Sr. Rose Patrick is remembered fondly by the Marshallese for embracing challenges on the islands with strength and creativity, and she remains an inspiration to government and education leaders.

In 2010, Sr. Rose Patrick returned to the Center, where she lived until her passing, surrounded by her friends and Maryknoll staff.

A wake for Sr. Rose Patrick was held on Jan. 12, 2026, in the Annunciation Chapel of the Maryknoll Sisters Center in Ossining, N.Y. A Mass of Christian Burial was said on Jan. 13, 2026, also in the Annunciation Chapel.

Sister Ramona Oppenheim, M.M., Maryknoll Sister of 71 Years, Dies at 96

Posted on March 16, 2026

Ossining, N.Y., Dec. 12, 2025 ── Sister Ramona Oppenheim, M.M., known as a loyal and fun-loving member of the Maryknoll Sisters for 71 years, died on December 3, 2025. She was 96

Sr. Ramona was born in Lima, Ohio, to Theodore Henry Oppenheim and Anna Elizabeth Mathias on April 28, 1929. She was raised in Coldwater, Ohio, with three sisters and four brothers, all of whom pre-deceased her. Sr. Ramona is survived by numerous nieces, nephews and in-laws.

Sr. Ramona was baptized at the Holy Trinity Parish, in the Archdiocese of Cincinnati. She graduated from Coldwater Public School in 1946 and began her college career at St. Mary’s College in Indiana, where she developed a passion for history and social sciences. She would complete her B.A. in history in 1950. She also received a B.S. in education from Mary Rogers College and went on to earn an M.A. in history from the Ateneo de Manila University while serving in the Philippines. 

Inspired by the Maryknoll Field Afar magazine, Sr. Ramona entered Maryknoll at Valley Park Novitiate in 1951. She received the name Sister Ramona Therese and took her first vows in 1954. 

In 1955, Sr. Ramona began her first mission in the Philippines, where she worked in education in Quezon City and Lucena City for a decade. In 1965, she began teaching at Maryknoll High School on the Maryknoll College Campus, while serving as a local superior. Sr. Ramona returned to the Maryknoll Sisters Center in Ossining, N.Y., in 1972, where she worked in the admissions office until 1975. 

From 1976 until 2004, Sr. Ramona served in the Mexico-Guatemala region, continuing her work in education with the addition of time back at the Center from 1985 to 1988. During this time, she was a member of the Mission Institute Coordinating Team and assisted the Center’s Physical Plant on the Blueprint Project. Sr. Ramona’s next mission took her to San Ysidro, Calif., in 2005. There, she worked in collaboration with the Maryknoll Society, Maryknoll Lay Missioners and the Tacoma Dominican Sisters to serve in immigration detention centers and clinics.

In 2010, Sr. Ramona became ill and returned to the Center in New York, where she remained until her passing.

A wake for Sr. Ramona was held on Dec. 9, 2025, in the Annunciation Chapel of the Maryknoll Sisters Center in Ossining, N.Y. A Mass of Resurrection was said on Dec. 10, 2025, also in the Annunciation Chapel.

Sister Rosemary Huber, M.M., Maryknoll Sister of 71 years, Dies at 94

Posted on February 17, 2026

Ossining, N.Y., Dec. 8, 2025 ── Sister Rosemary Huber, M.M., a Maryknoll sister of 71 years and avid learner, died on November 22, 2025. She was 94.

Sr. Rosemary was born in Borden, Indiana, to Joseph and Mary Koetter Huber on Aug. 3, 1921. She had four sisters and six brothers; four of her siblings have pre-deceased her. Sr. Rosemary graduated from the Academy of the Immaculate Conception at the Benedictine Monastery in Ferdinand, Indiana, in 1949. She entered the Maryknoll Sisters at Valley Park, Missouri, on Feb. 1, 1954. After taking her first vows on Sept. 8, 1956, Sr. Rosemary worked for a year on mission promotion at Maryknoll. She took her final vows at Maryknoll in Ossining, N.Y., on Sept. 8, 1962.

In 1963, Sr. Rosemary received her Bachelor of Science in Education from Mary Rogers College and went on to receive a master’s degree in hospital administration from St. Louis University the following year, with a residency in Michigan from 1964-1965.

Sr. Rosemary’s first assignment was in Pusan, Korea, in 1965. There, she worked in the Maryknoll Hospital and in the Cooperative Education Institute in Seoul, developing credit unions as paths out of poverty. She then served as the director of support services at the Maryknoll Sisters Center in New York, before being called to the Ursuline Community of Bandung, Indonesia for mission in 1972. For nearly two decades, Sr. Rosemary traveled throughout the Indonesian archipelago, serving in healthcare management for both local and provincial hospitals.

Sr. Rosemary briefly did medical-pastoral work on a mission in Aileu, East Timor, in 1991, before returning to the Maryknoll Sisters Center in 1992 to serve as Center healthcare administrator for five years. Her passion for inter-religion dialogue then brought her to Nepal, where she was elected to the Monastic Inter-Religious Dialogue Group in Kathmandu, worked in administration at Patan Hospital and taught English at a local high school. She also briefly worked in Congregational Service as a staff writer in the development department, before being assigned to Monrovia as a coordinator until 2010. She returned to the Center in 2011, where she remained until she passed.

A passionate learner, Sr. Rosemary received many certificates in different areas, including Inter-Religious Dialogue, Catholic Hospital Administration, bio-medical ethics and moral theology. She also received certificates of appreciation from the Hasan Sadikin Provincial Hospital and the Association of Religious Sisters in Bandung.

A wake for Sr. Rosemary was held on Dec. 3, 2025, in the Annunciation Chapel of the Maryknoll Sisters Center in Ossining, N.Y. A Mass of Resurrection was said on Dec. 4, 2025, also in the Annunciation Chapel.

Sister Jane Heckathorn, M.M., Maryknoll Sister for 62 Years, Dies at 89 

Posted on December 5, 2025

 

Ossining, N.Y., Nov. 24, 2025 – Sister Jane Heckathorn, M.M., a Maryknoll sister known for her sense of humor and flair for storytelling, died on Nov. 10, 2025, surrounded by her Maryknoll family. She was 89. 

Marie Jane Heckathorn was born on August 2, 1936, to Leonard T. and Lavina Kranz Heckathorn in Watertown, South Dakota; she had two sisters and one brother, both of whom have predeceased her.  She graduated from Watertown High School in 1954, after which she received her certificate as an X-Ray technician in 1957 from Minneapolis General Hospital, a program of the University of Minnesota. She worked as an x-ray technician in South Dakota for seven years before entering Maryknoll in 1963. She pronounced first vows on June 24, 1966, at Maryknoll, N.Y., and final vows on April 9, 1975, in the Philippines. 

Sr. Jane was assigned to the Philippines in 1966, where she worked in various health services in Manila and in Cotabato in the southern island of Mindanao. In 1972, she completed a Bachelor of Science degree in social work from the Centro Escolar University in Manila. She then worked in social and community development in Mindanao with a diverse population of Muslims, Christians and native tribes. Sr. Jane also helped in the resettlement and care of displaced persons, as well as doing outreach health care for women’s groups in nutrition, childcare and hygiene at the Notre Dame Clinic in Dulawan, Maguindanao.  

Between 1974 and 1978, Sr. Jane worked in various capacities at Notre Dame Schools in Cotabato, as teacher, acting principal, acting treasurer and as a professional development provider. She also helped to develop programs for victims of an earthquake and tsunami, which hit the region during this time. 

Sr. Jane then returned to the United States, and from 1979 until 2011, she found her ministry on the West Coast of the United States, primarily in Oakland, Calif. She was executive producer of the award-winning program, “Video Edition,” a weekly television news magazine of the Oakland diocesan newspaper, The Catholic Voice. For Casa Vicentia, a home in Oakland for single pregnant women in crisis, Sr. Jane served as a social worker, counselor, newsletter editor and assistant director. She also was on the administrative staff of Sophia Institute, a graduate program in Culture and Spirituality at Holy Names University. 

After her retirement in 2011, Sr. Jane stayed in California until her declining health brought her back to the Maryknoll Center in Ossining in 2022, where she passed away.  

A wake for Sr. Jane Heckathorn was held on Nov. 17, 2025, in the Annunciation Chapel on the grounds of Maryknoll Sisters in Ossining, N.Y. A Mass of the Resurrection was said on Nov. 18, 2025, also in the Annunciation Chapel. 

 

 

Sister Lilla Hull, M.M., Maryknoll Sister for 86 Years, Dies at 105

Posted on October 29, 2025

Ossining, N.Y., Oct. 10, 2025 – Sister Lilla Hull, M.M., a Maryknoll sister known for her work for contemplative communities, died on Sept. 19, 2025, surrounded by her Maryknoll family. She was 105.

Lilla Marie Hull was born on May 11, 1920, in Glencoe, Illinois, the second of five children of Loretta Cassidy and Sanford William Hull. Her oldest sister, Alice, married Bob Lynch, and Lilla’s three younger siblings: Sanford (Sandy) John Hull married Helen Moloney, Betty married Michael Gillespie, and James (Jim) Hull married Evelyn.

On Dec. 7, 1939, Sr. Lilla entered Maryknoll, and when she became a novice in 1940, she received the name Sr. Miriam Angela. On June 30, 1942, Sr. Lilla made her First Profession of Vows and her Final Vows in 1945. On Oct. 15, 1946, she entered the Contemplative Community at Maryknoll. After Vatican II, she reverted to her baptismal name, Lilla Marie Hull.

Around this time, Sr. Lilla, together with leaders in other contemplative communities, helped launch the Association of Contemplative Sisters throughout the United States. Also, in the Archdiocese of New York, Sr. Lilla was influential in the establishment of the Metropolitan Association of Contemplative Communities, of which she was the first president. For the next five decades, Sr. Lilla helped begin the Houses of Prayer on the East Coast; was founder and coordinator of the first cloister outside of Maryknoll, a prayer presence among the Navajo People in New Mexico; was part of Maryknoll’s contemplative community in Guatemala; and was a spiritual directress in New York for sisters and lay people.

In August 2017, Sr. Lilla’s health was declining; however, she continued to keep ties with the Contemplative Community. In 2019, Sr. Lilla celebrated her 80 years in Maryknoll with all the Maryknoll Sisters Jubilarians in Main Chapel. She led the procession at the beginning of the Jubilee Mass, and literally danced up the aisle. For the next six years, she was lovingly cared for by her Maryknoll family, nurses and aides as her health continued to decline.

Sr. Lilla is survived by many loving nieces, nephews, grandnieces and grandnephews. Her siblings and their spouses all predeceased Sr. Lilla.

A wake for Sr. Lilla Hull was held on Sept. 30 in the Annunciation Chapel on the grounds of Maryknoll Sisters in Ossining, N.Y. A Mass of the Resurrection was held on Oct. 1 also in the Annunciation Chapel

Sister Theresa Ann Mallmann, M.M., Maryknoll Sister for 66 Years, Dies at 93

Posted on October 22, 2025

Ossining, N.Y., Sept. 30, 2025 – Sister Theresa Ann Mallmann, M.M., a Maryknoll sister known for her motherly compassion, died on Sept. 15, 2025, the Feast of Our Lady of Sorrows. She was 93.

Sr. Ann, as she was known in recent years, was born on December 18, 1931, in Detroit, Michigan. She was the fifth and last child of Louis Anthony Mallman and Josephine Quaiatto Mallman. She is predeceased by her parents and siblings.

After being graduated from St. Bernard’s High School in 1949, Sr. Ann studied nursing at Mt. Carmel School of Nursing at Mercy Hospital, Detroit, becoming a registered nurse in 1956. Later, she earned a bachelor’s degree in science in nursing at Pace University.

Sr. Ann entered the Maryknoll Sisters, at Maryknoll, New York, on Sept. 2, 1959, and made her first profession of vows on June 24, 1962. She received the name Sister John Anthony.

In 1963, she was assigned to the Taiwan Region, where she made her final profession in 1968. She remained in Taiwan until 1972, enthusiastically tackling demanding work among the Chinese and Aboriginal People in Wu-She, Nantou, Hsien, a remote and isolated mountainous area. She organized a clinic, gave pastoral care and set up a kindergarten for children. However, while there, she became ill and returned to New York to recover her health and update her studies.

Deciding to remain in the United States, Sr. Ann worked in New York City and later with the Sinsinawa Dominicans in Wisconsin as a holistic health educator and therapist, serving the local and Native American communities until Covid struck in 2020. At this time, she returned to the Maryknoll Center in Ossining, and in early 2021 was seriously injured in a fall. Sr. Ann remained at the Center until her death.

A wake for Sr. Ann Mallmann was held on Sept. 25 in the Annunciation Chapel on the grounds of Maryknoll Sisters in Ossining, N.Y. A Mass of the Resurrection was held on Sept. 26 also in the Annunciation Chapel.

Sister Rose Lauren Earl, M.M., Maryknoll Sister for 75 Years, Dies at 96

Posted on October 22, 2025

Ossining, N.Y., Sept. 30, 2025 – Sister Rose Lauren Earl, M.M., a Maryknoll sister known for her lovely, gentle personality, died on Sept. 16, 2025, surrounded by Maryknoll sisters and aides. She was 96.

Sister Rose Lauren Earl was born Wilma Joan Earl on November 8, 1928, to Frank and Wilhelmina (Minnie) Earl in New Albany, Indiana. Her brother, Joseph, and her sister, Mary, have pre-deceased her.

After graduating New Albany High School in 1947, Sr. Rose Lauren studied accounting before entering Maryknoll Sisters on September 6, 1950, at Maryknoll, N.Y., where she made her first vows on March 7, 1953, receiving the name Rose Lauren. She made final vows there on March 7, 1959. A year later, she received her bachelor’s degree in education in June 1960.

It was at this time that Sr. Rose Lauren began her lifelong engagement in the Pacific Islands, from Hawaii to Majuro in the Marshall Islands. Here she taught, served as school principal and set up a teacher-training program with lecturers from the University of Hawaii, which had tremendous, far-reaching effects on education throughout the islands.

In 1978, she became involved with Natural Family Planning efforts, a ministry that would remain central to the rest of her life and work in Hawaii, as well as serving in various capacities in her original study area of accounting for the next 30 years. In 2008, Sr. Rose Lauren returned to the center to work in the Treasury Department, where she created a sense of teamwork and peace that spread joy throughout the department. After retiring, she spent time visiting with ill and elderly sisters, bringing joy to all of them.

A wake for Sr. Rose Lauren Earl was held on Sept. 22 in the Annunciation Chapel on the grounds of Maryknoll Sisters in Ossining, N.Y. A Mass of the Resurrection was held on Sept. 23 also in the Annunciation Chapel.

Sister Patricia Edmiston, M.M., Maryknoll Sister for 44 Years, Dies at 80

Posted on September 15, 2025

Maryknoll, NY: Sister Patricia Edmiston, M.M., a Maryknoll sister known for her joy and her smile, died on Aug. 26, 2025, with her dear friend, Sr. Ann Hayden, M.M., at her bedside. She was 80 years old.

Sr. Pat spent the majority of her ministry in Central America, having worked alongside the people of Nicaragua, Panama and El Salvador from 1974 until 2001, developing health programs and leadership training. Throughout her life as a missionary, she welcomed everyone she met with a joyful, open heart.

“We experienced her as an open and supportive community member to each sister,” said Sr. Teresa Hougnon, M.M., president of Maryknoll Sisters. “She was committed to accompanying the people as they lived through the war in Nicaragua and beyond.”

Patricia Ann Edmiston was born on April 10, 1945, to Marcus Morton and Josephine Brown Edmiston. She grew up with two brothers, James and Mark, and a sister, Kathy. She attended St. Denis elementary school in Yonkers, N.Y., and graduated from Yonkers High School in June 1963. She got her licensed practical nursing certificate from Grasslands School in 1967 and her registered nursing degree in 1972 from Bronx Community College.

Feeling the need for “something more,” Pat applied to the Maryknoll Sisters in 1972. “I think that Maryknoll’s mission is the bring the living Christ to the world,” she wrote. “My participation is by aiding in the physical as well as spiritual needs of people.”

Pat entered Maryknoll in St. Louis on Aug. 24, 1972, and made her first profession in Managua, Nicaragua on April 29, 1973. She professed her final vows on Aug. 1, 1981, in Ciudad Sandino, Managua, Nicaragua.

Her lifelong engagement in Central America began in 1974, doing health promotion in Pueblo Nuevo outside of Managua. After a short placement in Panama training young educated women for ministry, she realized her true calling was in health. And so, she directed health programs in El Salvador, Nicaragua and at the Maryknoll Center in Ossining for the next 20 years. From 1997 until 2001, Sr. Pat conducted

leadership training in Jinotepe, Nicaragua. As always, her heartfelt encouragement and sense of fun called local leaders to new levels of service and commitment.

Between 2001 and 2015, Sr. Pat served as administrator of the Maryknoll Sisters Home Care, director of Nursing Service, and was appointed to the Office of Audio-Visual Technology. Afterward, she was assigned in 2016 to the Eastern Region, where she and Sr. Ann Hayden, M.M., offered support to the immigrant population in Penitas, Texas, until health issues brought them back to the Center in 2021. Sr. Pat’s health steadily declined until her death on Aug. 25, 2025.

She is survived by her brother and sister-in-law Mark and Winnie Edmiston of Madison, Conn., a niece and nephew, and her sister Kathy Edmiston. She was predeceased by her brother James Edmiston.

A wake for Sr. Pat Edmiston was held on Sept. 2 in the Annunciation Chapel on the grounds of Maryknoll Sisters in Ossining, N.Y. A Mass of Resurrection was said on Sept. 3 also in the Annunciation Chapel.