Sister Mary Ann Patrick

Sister Mary Ann Patrick                ND 5233                     PDF Download

Mary Louise MAHON

Christ the King Province, Chardon, Ohio, USA

Date and Place of Birth:              January 21, 1935     Cleveland, Ohio
Date and Place of Profession:    August 16, 1958       Cleveland, Ohio
Date and Place of Death:            November 2, 2018   Health Care Center, Chardon, Ohio
Date and Place of Funeral:         November 7, 2018   Provincial Center, Chardon, Ohio
Date and Place of Burial:            November 8, 2018   Resurrection Cemetery, Chardon

“In the presence of the angels I will sing your praises, Lord.”

 Mary Louise was the third of the six children born to Edward and Florence (Weber) Mahon. She spent her childhood in a home where strong faith and lasting family bonds were nurtured. Throughout life, Mary Louise remembered and treasured the many adventures she had enjoyed with her siblings. She attended St. Michael High School in Cleveland where she met the Sisters of Notre Dame. From her first year there, Mary Louise recognized and wanted to respond to God’s call to become a religious. Her mother, however, asked that she work for two years after graduation. After two years as a long distance operator at the local telephone company, Mary Louise entered the novitiate on September 8, 1955, and at investment received the name Sister Mary Ann Patrick.

Sister’s first ministry was as an assistant teacher at Julie Billiart School in Cleveland for two years and then at the school’s new Lyndhurst campus until 1959. Her ministries in service to others spanned 62 years. Sister Mary Ann Patrick was known and loved in community for the countless ways, big and small, in which she cared for others: in food service, as nurse’s aide, as receptionist and librarian, as caregiver and companion, and for the past fourteen years as a member of the Pastoral Care Team in the Chardon Health Care Center.

Each new assignment, whether in the large provincial centers of Ansel Road or Chardon, in school settings at Notre Dame Academy in Middleburg, Virginia, and Regina High School in South Euclid, provided opportunities to serve in quiet, unassuming ways. Because of her height, Sister was characterized as “a gentle giant,” offering a compassionate heart especially toward those who were suffering or vulnerable. In her hospice work and as a member of the Pastoral Care Team, Sister Mary Ann Patrick was a quiet presence. Her child-like faith and trust were rooted in a great devotion to angels. In her welcoming acceptance of everyone she met, she discovered the truth: Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for in doing so, some have had angels as guests, without even knowing it.

In mid-September, Sister was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. It was to initiate a new chapter in her life’s journey. Even in pain, her genuine, warm smile and peaceful demeanor continued to exude a sense of well-being and welcome. Sister Mary Ann Patrick was a prayerful woman whose gentle, simple spirit and lifetime of service revealed her love for our good and gracious God. She went home to our loving God as she had lived—quietly, peacefully, gently. The desire of her heart has been fulfilled. May she rest in peace!