Sister Josephine Mary Lyons, 84
Sister Josephine Mary Lyons, 84, an elementary-school teacher for 25 years, died Sunday, Nov. 17, of heart failure at McAuley Convent in Merion.
Sister Josephine Mary Lyons, 84, an elementary-school teacher for 25 years, died Sunday, Nov. 17, of heart failure at McAuley Convent in Merion.
Sister Josephine Mary attended St. Carthage School in West Philadelphia and graduated from West Catholic High School for Girls in 1947.
She spent two years as a typist before entering the Sisters of Mercy in September 1949. She professed her vows in 1952.
During a quarter-century as a teacher, Sister Josephine Mary taught every grade from first through seventh.
In the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, she taught at Our Mother of Good Counsel in Bryn Mawr; Holy Cross in Springfield, Delaware County; St. Matthias in Bala Cynwyd; Our Lady of Lourdes in Overbrook; Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Havertown; St. Margaret in Narberth, and St. Denis in Havertown. She also taught in the dioceses of Allentown, Miami, and Raleigh, N.C.
In 1977, she joined the staff at Bishop Kenrick High School, which merged with Archbishop Kennedy High School in 1993 to become Kennedy-Kenrick High School, in Norristown.
She worked for 27 years in several roles in the school's main office. During that time she lived at St. Paul Convent in Norristown.
A gifted seamstress, she also enjoyed cooking. Sister Josephine Mary spent summers at the Sisters of Mercy vacation retreat in Sea Isle City, N.J., where she volunteered in the kitchen and dining room.
"She loved the Shore," said her first cousin and colleague, Sister Kathleen Lyons.
In 2004, Sister Josephine Mary moved to the Motherhouse of the Sisters of Mercy in Merion, working as a member of the support staff. In 2009, she retired to McAuley Convent.
She is survived by nieces and nephews. She was predeceased by brothers John P. Lyons and Msgr. Joseph G. Lyons, former pastor at St. Luke the Evangelist Church in Glenside.
A 6 p.m. viewing Thursday, Nov. 21, will be followed by a 7 p.m. Funeral Mass in the Convent of Mercy Chapel, 515 Montgomery Ave., Merion. Burial will be at 9:30 a.m. Friday, Nov. 22, in the Community Cemetery.
Contributions may be made to the Sisters of Mercy Mid-Atlantic Community, 515 Montgomery Ave., Merion, Pa. 19066.
610-313-8102