AASH... Remembering All Souls and Especially our beloved RSCJ

Kenwood Cemetery ~ Albany, N.Y. 
September,  2005
MER with AASH Past Presidents: Marion E. Glennon
and Valerie Moore O'Keeffe

On the feast of All Souls Day most of us will attend mass and remember loved ones. Over the years, I have many fond memories of visiting cemeteries where our beloved RSCJ are buried. Many of these women educators I have never met, but I am always eager to hear their stories and to learn more about how they individually and collectively have made a difference in our world.  

Several years ago, the alumnae of Prince Street hosted a Conge for the retired religious who lived in the Pax Christi community.  It was in 2005 when the RSCJ were scheduled to move from the former Kenwood Convent to Teresian House.  Marion Glennon and Valerie O'Keeffe, both AASH past presidents and I decided to visit the cemetery located on the grounds of Kenwood and pay our respects.  We stopped long enough to take a photo in front of the large headstone where Mother Mary Aloysia Hardey, R.S.C.J. is buried. Mother Hardey was born in Maryland in 1809 and died in France on June 17, 1886. Her body was re-interned on December 12, 1900 in Albany, NY.  Mother Hardey is responsible for opening our schools in the eastern part of the United States as well as Canada and Cuba. In Chicago, a school for boys was opened in 1935 and Reverend Mother Rosalie Hill named the school Hardey Prep in honor of one of our first and most influential American born religious of the 19th century. 

This past July, I was fortunate to be invited to attend the Society's 2012 Assembly as a collaborator and the above video was shown. "On the shoulders of ..."  is a moving tribute in remembrance of the Religious of the Sacred Heart who have died since the 2009 assembly was hosted in Chicago. As you watch the video you may see someone you recognize or think about other RSCJ from your past.  I encourage you to pay homage to these wonderful women with a gift to the Society.  This year marks the last year of the "In Mission For Life" campaign and your gift in honor of a beloved RSCJ would be a fitting tribute. To learn more or to donate click here.

Wishing all Sacred Heart alums a very blessed Feast of All Saints and All Souls!

Louise Lundergan, RSCJ (1911-2011)

Louise Lundergan, RSCJ (1911-2011) sits with
Margaret "Kelly" Howe, RSCJ (1920-2009)
photo taken in Albany, NY on September 17, 2005

Louise Lundergan, RSCJ passed away at age 100 years last Wednesday (July 20th)  and will be laid to rest tomorrow in the Kenwood Cemetery.  I had the distinct honor to attend my very first Conge hosted by the Rochester alums in 2005 for the retired religious before they all made the move to the Teresian House.  Sr. Lundergan and I discovered that we both had ties to Chicago and Barat College.  It was a lovely afternoon and I am so very happy I attended the wonderful celebration.

Both Sr. Louise Lundergan and Sr. Kelly Howe pictured above are now deceased.  May they rest in peace!  To read the full obit for Sr. Lundergan click here.