Sister Mary Alan

Sister Mary Alan        ND 5717            ⇒ PDF Download
Mary Elizabeth MILLER

Mary Immaculate Province, Toledo, Ohio, USA

Date and Place of Birth:              Jan. 18, 1943         Norwalk, Ohio
Date and Place of Profession:   Aug. 20, 1963        Toledo, Ohio
Date and Place of Death:            Feb. 21, 2015         Sandusky, Ohio
Date and Place of Funeral:        Feb. 26, 2015         Toledo, Ohio
Date and Place of Burial:            Feb. 27, 2015         Resurrection Cemetery, Toledo, Ohio

I ask to dwell in the house of the Lord all my days

Mary Beth was the second child of Elmer and Elizabeth (Fisher) Miller from Norwalk, Ohio. Her early years were full of life and activity with her sister Rita and her brother Alan with whom she attended St. Paul Elementary School. During her high school years she was an aspirant with the Sisters of Notre Dame in Toledo, Ohio. Notre Dame Academy ushered her into the world of academic achievement which she pursued for the rest of her life.

Upon completion of her own education, Sister Mary Alan then specialized in the education and care of children with special needs. Her constancy in caring and reaching out to them marked her as a deeply dedicated teacher and mentor for other teachers. In 1966 she began a long career of educating and guiding the students of Mary Immaculate School. She taught the intermediate students for six years before becoming the Principal of Mary Immaculate School, the SND community sponsored school for the mentally challenged students, until 2005. Even after that she continued ministry at Mary Immaculate School as consultant, director of special projects, and computer teacher until 2009.

Since 2009 Sister Mary Alan has been serving the people of Sandusky, Huron, and Port Clinton, Ohio. She has been working with the special needs students of Immaculate Conception School in Port Clinton, visiting the dying in hospice through Stein Hospice in Sandusky, and teaching the Good Shepherd program in parishes in Sandusky.

She was a quiet, warm and caring woman. She could calm the rough waters of a situation with a listening heart and the voice of reason. She was a person of wisdom who brought healing, hope and encouragement to those weighed down with life’s burdens. Pain was no stranger to Sister Mary Alan, but she did not allow it to hold her prisoner. She moved beyond it to find joy and purpose in serving others. A deeply contemplative person, one would find her each day before the Blessed Sacrament allowing Jesus to form and energize her for mission. Those who knew Sister Mary Alan count themselves blessed indeed.

Unexpectedly on Saturday morning the Good Shepherd summoned her to himself and carried her to her heavenly home. In her 52^th year of Religious Profession at the age of 72, Sister Mary Alan now rests in the loving embrace of the good God. May she continue to reach out and touch the lives of all those she so dearly loved.