Sister Mary Josephine Gorman, O.S.U., who entered the Congregation of the Ursuline Sisters of Tildonk in 1933 and professed her final vows eight years later, died Jan. 2 at Brookhaven Memorial Hospital, L.I. She was 94.
Born in Manhattan, she attended Manhattan College.
She ministered for many years as a teacher. Among her assignments were Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Ozone Park, 1938-47; and Our Lady of Grace, Howard Beach, 1953-59.
In 1996, she retired to Blue Point where she continued a ministry of prayer. She is survived by two sisters.
Internment was at the Ursulines’ cemetery in Blue Point, L.I.[hr]

Sister Ann Maureen McCarthy, C.S.J., formerly known as Sister Joseph Maureen, a member of the Sisters of St. Joseph, Brentwood, for 68 years, died Dec. 10. She was 84.
She entered the congregation in 1944 from Our Lady of Sorrows parish, Corona.
After attending St. Francis College, Brooklyn Heights, she began her teaching ministry.
She taught at Our Lady of Perpetual Help, Sunset Park, 1946-49; St. John the Evangelist, Park Slope, 1949-52; St. Anne’s, Brentwood, 1952-54; Immaculate Heart of Mary, Kensington, 1954-59; Most Precious Blood, Long Island City, 1959-63; St. Michael, Sunset Park, 1963-70; O.L. of Mt. Carmel, Williamsburg, 1970-85; St. Francis of Paola, Williamsburg, 1985-86; St. Rita, Long Island City, 1986-87, and 1994-96; and St. Vincent de Paul, Williamsburg, 1987-89.
She was project director of Northside Senior Citizen Center, 1990-94 and 1997-98.
After more than 45 years of service, she retired to Sacred Heart Convent Assisted Living Site in Hempstead until her death.
A Mass of Christian burial took place in Sacred Heart Chapel, Brentwood. Interment followed in Calvary Cemetery, Brentwood.[hr]

Sister Mary Charlotte Ryan, C.S.J., a member of the Sisters of St. Joseph, Brentwood, for 74 years, died Dec. 6. She was 91.
She entered the congregation in 1938 from Our Lady of Perpetual Help, Sunset Park. She attended St. Francis College, Brooklyn Heights, in 1962. She was certified as a member of the national association of Catholic Chaplains at St. Joseph’s Hospital, South Bend, Ind., in 1976.
Her teaching assignments in Brooklyn included St. Anthony of Padua in Greenpoint, 1940-43 and 1960-63; O.L. of Victory, Bedford-Stuyvesant, 1943-50; Visitation B.V.M., Red Hook, 1950-52; St. Teresa of Avila, Prospect Heights, 1952-60; Our Lady of Mt. Carmel, Williamsburg, 1963-68; and St. Vincent de Paul, Williamsburg, 1968-73.
From 1973 to 1975, she was a receptionist in the office of Dr. Alice O’Shaughnessy, C.S.J., and then worked in the Catholic Chaplains Program (CCP) in St. Joseph’s Hospital, South Bend, 1975-76.
She returned to parish work at Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary, Southampton, 1976-83; Our Lady of Miracles, Canarsie, 1983-89; and Sacred Heart, N. Merrick, 1989-91. She also was a chauffer in The Mary Louis Academy Convent, Jamaica Estates, 1991-93, before retiring to Brentwood.
A Mass of Christian burial was held in Brentwood.
[hr]
Father Paul Chan, 94, former secretary to Cardinal Paul Yu Pin of Nanking, China, and an active figure in Chinese-American Catholic circles for 60 years, died Dec. 27 in Flushing.
Born in Fujian Province, South China, he was educated both in China and abroad. As a seminarian, he studied philosophy with the Irish Jesuits at the regional seminary in Honking, and theology at the Theological Pontifical University, Rome.
Ordained in Rome in 1940, he remained there while earning a doctorate in theology from the Propaganda Fide University and subsequently a degree in canon law at the Lateran University.
Following World War II, Father Chan worked with Paulist Fathers at the Chinese Catholic Mission, San Francisco, Calif. Due to the Communist occupation of mainland China, he could not return to his own diocese, so he became active among Chinese students in the U.S.
Father Chan was appointed by the Vatican as the U.S. Representative of Overseas Chinese Student Services of the Catholic Central Bureau of China. He helped provide assistance to thousands of Chinese students in colleges throughout the U.S. and Canada.
When Cardinal Yu-pin of China was exiled to the U.S. in 1950, Father Chan became his secretary. While remaining active in Chinese Catholic circles in Manhattan and Flushing, he worked with the cardinal to establish the Sino-American Amity Fund, a benevolent organization offering college scholarships to Chinese students wishing to study in American universities; the Chinese Catholic Information Center; and the Chinese Catholic Student and Alumni Society in New York City.
Father Chan served as president of the Sino-American Amity Fund and director of the Chinese Catholic Information Center.
He also worked with the Paulist Fathers at the Chinese Catholic Mission, San Francisco, Calif.
A Mass of Christian burial was celebrated at St. John Vianney Church, Flushing, Jan. 7. Interment followed at Gate of Heaven Cemetery, Hawthorne, N.Y.[hr]

Regina Pacis Deacon Dies at 55

Deacon Ramon Carlos Pons, who served only two years as a permanent deacon of the diocese, died Dec. 31 at Calvary Hospital. He was 55.
A Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated Jan. 5 at Regina Pacis Shrine Church, Bensonhurst.
Auxiliary Bishop Frank Caggiano was the main celebrant of the funeral Mass. Special concelebrants included Msgr. Ronald Marino and Fathers Vincentius Do and John J. Grandos.
A substance abuse counselor at Beth Israel Hospital, he was ordained a deacon on May 23, 2009 by Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio at St. James Cathedral-Basilica, Downtown Brooklyn.
Prior to ordination, he also was active at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Basilica, Sunset Park, as a lector and music minister in the Spanish Charismatic prayer group.
Assigned to Regina Pacis to work with the growing Hispanic population, he prepared candidates for the sacraments, preached, and also worked in ministries for the English-speaking.
He is survived by his wife Narcisa of Staten Island and their four children and four grandchildren.[hr]

Former Cabaret Singer Who Became a Nun Dies at 88

Sister Helen Horton, S.C.,  formerly Sister Mary Ligouri, a native of Manhattan and a member of the Sisters of Charity since 1946, died Jan. 8.
She attended Sacred Heart Academy, Hempstead, L.I.;  Garden City H.S., and worked for five years as a professional singer in such places as the Stork Club and the Hotel Pierre.
She entered the Sisters of Charity of New York in February, 1946, and attended the College of Mount Saint Vincent and New York University.
One of her earliest assignments was teaching at Our Lady of Angelus, Rego Park.
In 1967 her ministry in education took on a new dimension when she was assigned to work at the Archdiocesan Instructional T.V. (I.T.V.) Center in Yonkers as program director.
In 1984 she received the first annual William E. Fagan award from Children’s Television International, recognizing her “excellence in leadership and contribution to the growth and quality of instructional television.She retired from I.T.V. in 1997.
She also was the leader of song at St. Joseph parish, Yonkers, for more than 25 years, preparing many children for First Holy Communion.