Maryknoll, NY —  Sister Alice Regina McGinn, MM, educator and pastoral worker in Bolivia, Peru and the United States, died May 27, 2015, at the Maryknoll Sisters Center, Ossining, NY.  She was 93 years old and had been a Maryknoll Sister for 74 years.

Born on January 5, 1922, in Providence, RI, to James B. and Mary Frances Cummings McGinn, Sister Alice entered Maryknoll on July 2, 1940, following graduation from St. Mary’s Academy in Providence.  Even before graduation she had planned to enter Maryknoll. Her brother, Father John McGinn, was already a Maryknoll priest and Alice wanted to join the Sisters community to fulfill a hope “to go to the missions where I, too, felt called to go.”

Upon completing the novitiate, Sister Alice made her First Profession of Vows on March 7, 1943, and immediately after, was assigned to Los Altos, CA, where she worked with the Maryknoll Fathers in the kitchen at the minor seminary in Mountain View. It was there, three years later, that she made her Final Profession, and that same year, 1946, she received her first foreign assignment to Bolivia. “My first desire for mission had been for China, where my brother was,” Sister Alice commented. “South America was a place I had not thought about.”

Sister Alice studied Spanish in Cochabamba, Bolivia, and, a year later, went to the small town of Cobija, Pando, which is on the northernmost frontier with Brazil. There she helped in the parish primary school, learning while doing what seemed to come naturally to her: teaching. In 1954, she went to another frontier town also across from Brazil, Guayaramerin, serving as the principal of the parish primary school there.

Following a period of renewal in the United States in 1956, Sister Alice returned to Bolivia, becoming director of the catechetical program as well as a teacher in the parish primary school in Cochabamba. She returned to the States in 1964, where she continued studies for her bachelor’s degree in education at Maryknoll Teachers College, completing them in 1967.

Sister Alice then returned to South America, this time serving in the highlands of Peru.  In Puno and, later, in Capachica, she used her teaching skills with catechists, as well as her secretarial skills in the organization of much needed cooperatives. These cooperatives were a Christian response to the economic plight of the communities in that area. In Capachica, too, a creative response to small religious community living was experienced, as religious from different communities shared life, faith and ministry under the same roof. 

Sister Alice left Peru at the end of 1970, then sharing her South American experiences of 20 years with relatives and friends in the USA, as well as giving mission talks in parishes and schools in New England as part of the Maryknoll Sisters Mission Education Team.

Always eager for self improvement and learning new skills, Sister Alice studied the fundamentals in bilingualism at Boston State  Teachers College, then studied Latin American literature at Salve Regina College, Newport, RI, where she receive the Sigma Delta Pi Award. She also attended Sawyer School of Business, Providence, RI,  where she earned a career secretary diploma in 1974.

For the next two years, Sister Alice worked with the Maryknoll Fathers Development Team as secretary in their New York City office. In 1978, she attended Southeastern Massachusetts University where she earned credits in bilingualism-analysis of teaching foreign languages.

From 1979 until 1984 she taught in the Providence, RI, school system, then was involved in catechetics, as a Eucharistic minister and lector at Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary Parish in Providence from 1984 to 1994.  She then volunteered in various pastoral work in local parishes in Providence until 2008, when she retired. She returned to the Maryknoll Sisters Center in 2013, where she lived until her death.

Sister Alice was the youngest and last of her siblings. She was predeceased by her brothers, Rev John A. McGinn, MM; Vincent P. McGinn; James D. McGinn; Edwin C. McGinn; Robert F. McGinn, and Joseph A. McGinn; and her sister, Mary C. McGinn O’Connor.  She will be deeply missed by her nieces and nephews, grand nieces and nephews, who continue to reside in Rhode Island.

A vespers service will be held for Sister Alice on Tuesday, June  2, 2015,  at 4:15 p.m. in the Chapel of the Annunciation at the Maryknoll Sisters Center at Maryknoll, NY.  A Mass of Christian Burial will follow on Wednesday, June 3, 2015, at 11 a.m. in the same location. Interment will be in the Maryknoll Sisters Cemetery on the Center grounds.

Sister Theresa Maksym,
Educator/Administrator in Guatemala and Mexico
Dies at 87

Maryknoll, NY —  Sister Theresa Marie Maksym, MM, missioner-educator in Panama, Guatemala and Mexico, died May 6, 2015, at the Maryknoll Sisters Center, Ossining, NY.  She was 87 years old.

Born in Jamaica, NY, on January 7, 1928, to Konstanty and Janina Lazowska Maksym, Sister Theresa entered Maryknoll on October 5, 1946 at its motherhouse in Ossining, NY, from St. Joseph’s Parish, Jamaica, NY.  She received the religious name Sister M. Francis Christine, made her First Profession of Vows) on April 6, 1949, at the motherhouse, and her Final Vows on April 6, 1952, in Panama.

A 1945 graduate of Jamaica High School, Jamaica, NY, Sister Theresa also held a bachelor’s degree in education from Maryknoll Teachers College, earned in 1958, and attended Maryknoll Seminary in Spring 1976.

Sister Theresa’s first assignment was to Balboa, Panama, where she taught kindergarten, did catechetical work and home visitation, and ministered to youth from 1949-1953.  She then taught third graders in Ancon, where she was also involved again in catechetical work, home visitation and ministry to youth, from 1953-1957.

Sister Theresa was then sent to Guatemala, where she served as principal and teacher of Grades 2 through 6 at San Miguel Acatan, Huehuetenango from 1959-1965.  She also worked with women, did home visitation and catechetical work, as well as census work during that period.

Sister Theresa then was assigned to Mexico, where she would serve for the next 42 years.  From 1965-1974, she  served as principal and  taught sociology and religion to girls in the Commercial Department at Helena Herlihy Hall in Mexico City. Then, in 1974, she was put in charge of selling the property and phasing over the school to the administration of lay professionals.

In 1976, Sister Theresa was sent to the Yucatan, where she would serve for the next 31 years.  There she was an English teacher and engaged in pastoral ministry at Colonia Hidalgo de Chuburna, Merida.  She trained Mayan girls as catechists, coordinated catechetical programs, formed a pastoral team, started a computer school, developed support groups, offered leadership training classes, and encouraged the use of the Mayan language.

Sister Theresa is survived by a sister, Helen Golonka of Kew Garden Hills, NY, a brother, Carl Maksym of Yonkers, NY, and a niece.

A vespers service will be held for Sister Theresa on Thursday, May 14, 2015,  at 4:15 p.m. in the Chapel of the Annunciation at the Maryknoll Sisters Center at Maryknoll, NY.  A Mass of Christian Burial will follow on Friday, May 15, 2015, at 11 a.m. in the same location. Interment will be in the Maryknoll Sisters Cemetery on the Center grounds.

Sister Mary Clare Henry,
Missioner to the Philippines for over 50 Years
Dies at 87

Maryknoll, NY —  Sister Mary Clare Henry, MM, missioner to the Philippines for 54 years, died May 1, 2015, at the Maryknoll Sisters Center, Ossining, NY.  She was 87 years old.

Born in Weehawken, NJ,  on September 5, 1927, to William G. and Anna Marie Weiss Henry, Sister Mary Clare entered Maryknoll at its motherhouse in Ossining, NY, in 1950 from St. Augustine’s Parish, Union City, NJ, and made her final vows on March 7, 1959, in Manila, Philippines. A 1945 graduate of St. Michael’s High School, Union City, Sister Mary Clare also held a B.A. in social science, with a minor in education from Notre Dame College, Staten Island, NY.   She also studied at Newark Teachers College in 1949 and Maryknoll Seminary in 1979.

Sister Mary Clare began her service in the Philippines with a year’s language study in Manila.  She then taught English and religion in Lipa from 1954-1956, in Pakil (where she also served as regional assistant superior in 1960 and superior in 1962) from 1956-1965, in Lucena from 1965-1968, and Cateel from 1968-1971.   She then taught religion and served as a supervisor for San Francisco del Monte  High School, a public high school in Malabon from 1971-1972, followed by nearly eight months in congregational service, assisting in housekeeping and with light repairs at the Maryknoll Sisters Center in Ossining.

Sister Mary Clare returned to the Philippines in 1976, working as a CCD coordinator in Malabon until 1979, then in Quezon City until 1983.  She then did pastoral work at San Isidreo Parish in Nuro, Upi, Mazuindanao, from 1985-1989.

From 1989-1993,  Sister Mary Clare worked again at the Maryknoll Sisters Center, this time serving as administrator and business coordinator for Maryknoll Mission Institute, as well as speaking about the work of Maryknoll Sisters at local parishes in 1992.

Following a period of ministry to her family, Sister Mary Clare returned once more to the Philippines, where she did pastoral work, volunteered with the National Vocational Rehabilitation Center’s literacy program, provided hospitality to those visiting the regional house, and tutored from 1998-2004.  She then taught English to several Sisters from Asia from 2004-2010.  She retired in 2011, residing at the Maryknoll Sisters Center until her death.

A vespers service will be held for Sister Mary Clare on Tuesday, May 5, 2015 at 4:15 p.m. in the Chapel of the Annunciation at the Maryknoll Sisters Center at Maryknoll, NY.  A Mass of Christian Burial will follow on Wednesday, May 6, 2015 at 11 a.m. in the same location. Interment will be in the Maryknoll Sisters Cemetery on the Center grounds.

Sister Martha Getchell, MM,
Missioner to Peru for 50 Years,
Dies at 83

Maryknoll, NY —  Sister Martha Getchell, MM, missioner to Peru for 50 years, died April 25, 2015, at the Maryknoll Sisters Center, Ossining, NY.  She was 83 years old.

Born in Minneapolis, MN,  on January 8, 1932, to George Edward and Mary Dugan Getchell, Sister Martha entered Maryknoll at its motherhouse in Ossining, NY, in 1954 from St. Peter’s Parish, Newark, NJ, and made her final vows on March 7, 1963, in Lima, Peru.  A 1954 graduate of Good Counsel College, White Plains, NY, with a B.S. in business and education, she served as president of the school’s Mission Society.

Following two years working as a secretary at Maryknoll’s St. Teresa’s Residence, Sister Martha was sent to Peru where she would spend much of her missionary life.  Her first assignment was teaching business subjects to students at Santa Rosa High School, the first parochial school ever established in Lima, from 1960-1967.  Sister Martha was one of 12 Maryknoll Sisters who staffed the school.

Late in 1967, she returned to the Maryknoll Sisters Center, and from 1968-1969 worked in the Maryknoll Fathers Comptroller’s Office. In 1969, she returned to Peru, where she was assigned to the Altiplano to work with Bishop Edward Fedders, MM, as secretary-treasurer of the Juli Prelature, a position she would hold until 1984.  During those 15 years, she also worked in the Office of Catholic Education, working with a program for formation of religious education teachers, as well as doing pastoral work.  She also served as regional coordinator of Maryknoll Sisters in Peru from 1978-1981.

In 1984, Sister Martha returned to the United States, working in the congregation’s Treasury and in the Employee Personnel office until 1988. She returned to Peru in 1989 where she was invited to join the team of Maryknollers serving in Tacna, on the southernmost border of Peru.  There she worked with a family catechetics program, involving both parents and children in religious formation.  She returned to the Maryknoll Sisters Center in 2009, where she resided until her death.

“I thank God for the 50 wonderful years I spent in Peru,” Sister Martha reflected during an interview in 2010. “For me, mission is about being with people, growing and understanding each other; learning to stand back and let the people take over. Their love of God and their faith were always a light for me and they knew how to laugh and have fun.”

A vespers service will be held for Sister  Martha on Wednesday, April 29, 2015 at 4:15 p.m. in the Chapel of the Annunciation at the Maryknoll Sisters Center at Maryknoll, NY.  A Mass of Christian Burial will follow on Thursday, April 30, 2015 at 11 a.m. in the same location. Interment will be in the Maryknoll Sisters Cemetery on the Center grounds.

Sister M. James Florence Blanchard, MM, died Tuesday, April 14, 2015, at the Maryknoll Sisters Center.  She was 86 years old and had spent 22 years with the people of Tanzania, teaching various classes and learning and embracing their culture. “If you have been to someone’s village you are a friend for life,” she commented.

As an educator, Sister James affected and improved the lives of many, teaching them life skills, such as sewing, infant care, socio-economic values and the benefits of a good diet.

Born on September 22, 1928, in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, Canada, to James Edward and Florence M. Gallant Blanchard, Sister James, or “Jamesy” as she was known by the other Sisters at Maryknoll, was christened Mary Florence Blanchard, attended the Notre Dame Academy in Charlottetown from 1943-1945, and graduated from Mount St. Vincent Academy, Halifax, Nova Scotia in 1947.

On September 6, 1947, she entered Maryknoll at their motherhouse in Ossining, NY, from St. Dunstan Parish, Charlottetown.  She made her first profession on March 7, 1950 at the Motherhouse and was employed in the kitchen for a year.

In 1952, Sister James received her first overseas assignment, in which she was sent to Africa. Following completion of  Kiswahili language studies in Kowak, Tanzania, she worked in a dispensary for over two years, making her final vows on March 7, 1953.  In 1955, she was assigned to Nyengina, Tanzania, where she taught second grade, did daily office tasks, and taught women how to sew, while also serving as superior of the Maryknoll Sisters in that region, until 1956. She then taught sewing and did office work in other Tanzanian communities, including Rosana from 1956-1962 and 1965-1971, Kinesi from 1962-1963, and Isango from 1963-1965.

Sister James was then sent to Tarime, Tanzania, where she served until 1974 in rural community development. Noting that the local women had no dresses or slips, she taught them how to make inexpensive clothing. She also educated the people on their diets, taught them to use their cattle as food rather than dowry, taught them reading and writing, health, socioeconomics and homecare.  “Twenty years ago, men were kings. Women didn’t have anything like their own money,” she noted in an interview during that time period. “Now they have their own gardens, bananas and cabbage. When they sell the produce, I try to make sure they keep what they earn.” Under her guidance, the men also became more willing to cooperate regarding health care, some of them even encouraging pregnant women to come in for an examination.

In mid-summer 1974, Sister James suffered a severe stroke and, once her condition stabilized, she returned to the Maryknoll Sisters Center in Ossining.  There, she worked part-time in the Stamp and Mail Department until her death.

A vespers service will be held for Sister  James, who donated her body to science, on Monday, April 20, 2015, at 4:15 p.m. in the Chapel of the Annunciation at the Maryknoll Sisters Center at Maryknoll, NY.  A memorial Mass will follow on Tuesday, April 21, 2015, at 11 a.m. in the same location.

Maryknoll, NY —  Sister Gemma Marie Berger, MM,  one-time regional spiritual director of the Worldwide Fatima Apostolate, Guadelupe, CA, died on April 12, 2015, at the Maryknoll Sisters Center. She was 89 years old.

Born on April 25, 1925 in Gardenville, NY, to Edward J. and Rose L. Karg Berger, Sister Gemma Marie was baptized Geraldine Margaret Berger and attended Fourteen Holy Helpers Parish, Gardenville, along with her parents and siblings, Edward, Eugene, Richard and Rosemary. A 1943 graduate of Mount Mercy Academy, Buffalo, NY, she also attended St. Nicholas High School, Buffalo, from 1939-1941.

Upon learning that she desired to become a missionary, Sister Gemma Marie’s pastor recommended Maryknoll, which she entered on September 6, 1944. She made her first vows on March 7, 1947 at the motherhouse and her final vows on March 7, 1950, in Mountain View, CA.  A 1958 graduate of Maryknoll Teachers College, Maryknoll, NY, with a bachelor’s degree in education, Sister Gemma Marie spent much of her missionary life as an elementary school teacher in Chinatown, Chicago, IL and San Juan Capistrano, CA.

Following work in the seminary kitchens at the Venard in Scranton, PA, and Maryknoll, NY, from 1947-1949, Sister Gemma Marie was sent to San Juan Capistrano, CA, where she taught CCD to migrant workers until 1950. Following a brief period in Mountain View, CA, where she made her final vows, Sister Gemma Marie returned to the Maryknoll Sisters Center, Maryknoll, NY, where she worked in the Promotion Department from 1952-1958.

Sister Gemma Marie then taught third grade at St. Therese’s School in Chicago’s Chinatown from 1958-1969, and fourth grade from 1958-1959.  She was then sent to Guadelupe, CA, where she taught CCD to elementary school children at the Guadelupe mission from 1971 until the mission closed in 1977.  During this time, she also supervised lay teachers, engaged in assorted parish activities, organized the church choir, and served as regional spiritual director of the Worldwide Fatima Apostolate.  In 1977, she retired, living at the Maryknoll Sisters Residence in Monrovia, CA, where she engaged in a variety of volunteer works until 2009 when she returned to the Maryknoll Sisters Center in New York.

Sister Gemma Marie is survived by her brother Richard E. Berger of Columbus, OH, and her sister, Rosemary Berger, of Orchard Park, NY, as well as an aunt, Sister M. Eugene Karg, SSJ, of Clarence, NY, and other relatives.

A vespers service will be held for Sister Gemma Marie on Tuesday, April 14, 2015, at 4:15 p.m. in the Chapel of the Annunciation at the Maryknoll Sisters Center at Maryknoll, NY.  The Liturgy of Christian Burial will take place on April 15, 2015, at 11 a.m. in the same location. Interment will be in the Maryknoll Sisters Cemetery at the Center.

Maryknoll, NY – Sister Miriam Xavier Mug, MM, a missioner, teacher and school administrator in Hong Kong, died March 31, 2015, at Maryknoll Home Care III, Maryknoll Sisters Center. She was 101 years old, was the eldest member of her congregation, and had been a Maryknoll Sister for 71 years

Born on September 22, 1913 in Lafayette, IN, to George F. and Grace Wheeler Mug, Sister Miriam was raised in St. Louis, MO, along with her three siblings, where the family attended St. Rose of Lima Parish. A graduate of Visitation Academy and St. Louis University, both in St. Louis, she entered Maryknoll Sisters in 1943, making her first vows at the congregation’s motherhouse in Ossining, NY, on March 7, 1946, and final vows in Hong Kong on March 7, 1949. She held a BA in education from St. Louis University, from which she graduated in 1936, and spent most of her missionary life as a teacher and school administrator in Hong Kong.

Sister Miriam’s first assignment was to Maryknoll Convent School, Kowloontong, China, where she taught high school math, history and religion from 1946-54. She then served as principal of Maryknoll School, Hong Kong, from 1954-57, returning to teach in Kowloontong, from 1958-61.  She was then named principal of the primary division of the school, a position she held until 1967, when she returned to Maryknoll Sisters Center, Maryknoll, NY, to work in promotion for two years.

In 1969, she returned to Kowloontong, where she taught high school English and biblical knowledge, until 1979.  She also served in the congregation’s regional administration from 1977-82, and its finance officer and regional bookkeeper from 1978-87.  She also worked in Hong Kong as a trustee for the Maryknoll Medical and Welfare Association from 1988-2000,  in communication and secretarial services for the China Region from 1988-1998 and a volunteer at the Holy Spirit Study Centre in Hong Kong doing clerical work from 1993-2000.

Retiring in 2000, Sister Miriam lived at the Maryknoll Sisters Retirement Home in Monrovia, CA, until 2004, when she returned to the Maryknoll Sisters Center where she was part of the Eden Community.

A vespers service will be held for Sister Miriam on Monday, April 6, 2015, at 4:15 p.m. in the Chapel of the Annunciation at the Maryknoll Sisters Center at Maryknoll, NY.  A Liturgy of Christian Burial will take place on Tuesday, April 7, 2015, at 11 a.m. in the same location. Interment will be in the Maryknoll Sisters Cemetery at the Center.

Sister M. Christine LaTulippe, MM, a medical missioner in the Philippines for 20 years, died January 21, 2015, at Maryknoll Sisters Home Care IV, Maryknoll, NY.  She was 84 years old and had been a Maryknoll Sister for 55 years.

Sister Christine was born on May 10, 1930, to Lewis B.  and Sadie LaRochelle LaTulippe in Colchester, VT. She was one of 13 children born to the couple.

A 1948 graduate of Salem Central High School, Salem, NY, she became a registered nurse following completion of her studies at Mercy Hospital, Springfield, MA, in 1952. She then worked at Albany Hospital, Albany, NY, from 1952-1957 and the National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, from 1957 until her decision to enter Maryknoll Sisters in 1959.

Sister Christine entered Maryknoll on September 2, 1959 from Holy Cross Parish, Salem, NY, and made her First Profession of Vows on June 24, 1962, at the congregation’s novitiate in Topsfield, MA and her Final Vows on June 24, 1969 in the Philippines.

Following completion of an associates degree at Maryknoll Teachers College, Maryknoll, NY, in 1963, she applied her nursing skills at Bethany House, the Maryknoll Sisters residence for elderly and infirm Sisters in Ossining, NY, from 1963-1964.  She then attended Salve Regina College, Newport, RI, where she completed her B.S. in nursing in 1965.

Sister Christine was then sent to the Philippines, where she would spend a total of 20 years in ministry.  She first worked as a nurse in St. Joseph’s Hospital for sugar cane workers in Manapla, Negros Occidental, from 1965-1968. After a brief period at Maryknoll College, Manila, Sister Christine was sent to Malabon, where she served for two years, working at Philippine General Hospital, helping to set up a new parish center, St. James, and running an adult education clinic.

In 1970, she returned to the United States, where she provided nursing service in the Maryknoll Sisters infirmary, Maryknoll, NY, from 1970-1972.  While there, she felt a growing desire to be involved in pastoral ministry, which led her to earning a pastoral associate certificate from Catholic Chaplains Association, Washington, DC, in 1973. She then worked in pastoral care at St. John’s Hospital, Springfield, IL, from 1974-1975, and at ABBA  Community, Albany, NY, doing youth retreats for its House of Prayer in 1975.

At the end of 1975, Sister Christine returned to the Maryknoll Sisters Center, Ossining, NY, where she served as a nurse to residents there until 1979.

Sensing a renewed call to the Philippines, she engaged in language study and a “reinsertion program” offered by the Manila and Infanta Prelature in the Philippines from 1979-1980.  She then worked at a refugee center in Bataan, where she prepared Vietnamese refugees for immigration to the United States by acquainting them with U.S. culture, from 1981-1982. She then worked with Urban Missionaries Exposure in Manila in 1983, and in promotion for the Church Peoples Rights Team, also in Manila in 1984.

In 1985, Sister Christine returned to the Maryknoll Sisters Center where she worked in the pharmacy until 1987, when she returned to the Philippines, serving in various capacities until 1988.  She then returned, once again, to the Center, where she worked in reception from 1988-1990, in promotion for the Development Department from 1992-1993, and in various support services from 1994-2008.  She also was a hospice worker at Phelps Memorial Hospital, Sleepy Hollow, NY, as well as a pastoral volunteer at Westchester County Medical Center, Valhalla, NY, from 2000 to 2004.

She is survived by her brother, George LaTulippe of Plattsburgh, NY; two sisters, Mrs. Mary Logan of Stamford, CT, and Mrs. Nancy Lemery of Micro, NC, and other relatives.

A vespers service will be held for Sister Christine on Thursday, January 29, 2015 at 4:15 p.m. in the Chapel of the Annunciation at the Maryknoll Sisters Center at Maryknoll, NY.  The Liturgy of Christian Burial will take place on Friday, January 30, 2015, at 11 a.m. in the same location. Interment will be in the Maryknoll Sisters Cemetery at the Center.

Sister Leona Michiels, MM, an educator in Hawaii for more than 20 years, died January 17, 2015, at Maryknoll Sisters Home Care IV, Maryknoll, NY.  She was 97 years old and had been a Maryknoll Sister for 76 years.

Sister Leona was born on November 8, 1917, to Leo P. and Leona M. Syoen Michiels in Chicago, IL. She was the oldest of ten children born to the couple. A 1935 graduate of Immaculata High School, Chicago, she entered Maryknoll at their Motherhouse in Maryknoll, NY, from St. Ignatius Parish, Chicago, on December 7, 1938, following three years of study at Mundelein College, Chicago.

She made her First Profession of Vows on June 30, 1941, at the Motherhouse, having retained her baptismal name at reception, and her Final Profession of Vows in Hawaii on June 30, 1944.  After her First Profession, she completed her studies at Manhattanville College, New York, NY, receiving a B.A. in biology in 1942.  She later secured an M.S. in education from Temple University in 1965.

Sister Leona was assigned to Hawaii in 1943, at a time when Maryknoll Sisters were operating 10 Catholic schools in the diocese, which encompasses what is now the entire state. She taught junior and senior high school science at St. Anthony School, Wailuku, Maui, from 1943-1959, then was transferred to Maryknoll School, Honolulu, where she taught physics, algebra and geometry for one year. She then spent one year teaching science at St. Ann’s School, Kaneohe, Oahu, in 1960.

Following completion of her master’s degree at Temple University in 1965, Sister Leona went to Helen Herlihy Hall in Mexico for language study, quickly becoming proficient in Spanish. She then taught science at Colegio Monte Maria in Guatemala until 1971.

Sister Leona then returned to Hawaii, where she again taught at St. Ann’s School in Kaneohe until 1973, when she returned to the Maryknoll Sisters Center. There she served as infirmary driver until 1976, when she moved to the congregation’s residence in Monrovia, CA, to serve as a driver there.

In 1981, Sister Leona again returned to the Center, where she set up the congregation’s Stamp Department until 2010.

A vespers service will be held for Sister Leona on Wednesday, January 21, 2015, at 4:15 p.m. in the Chapel of the Annunciation at the Maryknoll Sisters Center at Maryknoll, NY.  The Liturgy of Christian Burial will take place on Thursday, January 22, 2015, at 11 a.m. in the same location. Interment will be in the Maryknoll Sisters Cemetery at the Center.

Sister Honora Felix, Maryknoll Sister for 60 YearsMaryknoll, NY – Sister Honora Lucilla Felix, an educator in Guatemala and Panama, died Wednesday, January 6, 2015, at Phelps Memorial Hospital, Sleepy Hollow, NY. She was 81 years old.

Born in Worcester, MA, on November 7, 1934. She graduated from Attleboro High School in 1952 and Trinity College, Washington, DC, in 1956 with a B.A. in history, specializing in government.

Sister Honora entered the Maryknoll Congregation from St. John the Evangelist Parish, Attleboro, MA, on September 2, 1956 and was given the religious name Sister Christiana Maria. She made her First Profession of Vows on June 24, 1959 at Maryknoll, NY, and her Final Vows on June 24, 1965, in Panama.

Sister Honora began her work with Maryknoll in 1959, serving in the Publicity Department at the Maryknoll Sisters Center, during which she appeared on the Archdiocese of New York’s children’s program, “Let’s Talk About God,” on WNBC-TV.

In September 1960,  she embarked on her first foreign mission to Central America. Her first stop was Guatemala, where she spent five months studying Spanish. She then arrived in Mexico, where she taught English and religion for the next two years, at both the elementary and high school levels.

In 1963, Sister Honora traveled to Panama, where she continued her teaching, expanding into classes on history, geography, math, art, and religious education. During the next four years, she worked steadily and with great love, even in the face of the Canal Zone riots.

Sister Honora returned to Guatemala in 1967, remaining there until 1981, forming Christian leaders, doing parish field work, teaching at Monte Maria School, and training fellow instructors – all despite the guerrilla warfare raging since two months after her arrival.

After ten years in the U.S., during which time she took care of her ailing mother and offered Congregational Service in the Center’s Development Department and Archives, Sister Honora returned to Guatemala in 1993. She ministered to the poor and marginalized in the growing shantytown of Mezquital, outside Guatemala City for eleven years.  Sister Honora was involved in pastoral work, religious education and literacy.

Sister Honora returned to the Maryknoll Sisters Center in 2004, where she served as an office assistant for the congregation’s Eden Community until 2014.

A vespers service will be held for Sister Honora on Monday, January 11, 2016  at  4:15 p.m. in the Main Chapel at Maryknoll Sisters Center.  A funeral Mass will follow on Tuesday, January 12 at 11:00 a.m. also in the Main Chapel at the Center. Interment will follow in the Maryknoll Sisters Cemetery on the Center grounds.