Sister M. St. Mel Wright, IHM, formerly known as Barbara Catherine Wright, of the Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, died May 20, at age 92, at Our Lady of Peace Residence in Scranton, Pa.
She entered the IHM Congregation on September 8, 1949, and made her temporary profession of vows on May 8, 1952, and her final profession of vows on August 2, 1955.
She received a Bachelor of Science degree in elementary education/English, and a Master of Science degree in special education/elementary education, both from Marywood College.
Sister St. Mel served as a teacher in St. Ephrem Elementary School in Brooklyn. (1952-1954); St. Peter Catechetical Center in Wellsboro, Pa., (1954-1955); St. Patrick Catechetical Center in Milford, Pa., (1955-1957); St. Ambrose Elementary School in Bridgeport, Conn., (1957-1965); St. Pius X Elementary School in Coeur d’Alene, Indiana, (1965-1971); Archbishop Neale Elementary School in La Plata, Md., (1971-1978); and St. John the Evangelist Elementary School in Silver Spring, Md., (1978-1979).
She also served as director of candidates for the IHM Congregation (1979-1982); sector coordinator for the IHM Congregation, (1982-1990); core group member at IHM Spiritual Renewal Center in Cresco, Pa., (1990-1994); coordinator of the Marian Convent in Scranton, Pa., (1994-2005); assistant administrator of IHM in Scranton, Pa., (2005-2010); and pastoral care volunteer at Our Lady of Peace Residence in Scranton, Pa., (2010-2013).
From 2013 until the time of her death, Sister St. Mel was a prayer minister at Our Lady of Peace Residence in Scranton.
Interment will be at St. Catherine’s Cemetery in Moscow, Pa. Due to restrictions related to the coronavirus, the funeral Mass, and graveside service are private.
Memorial contributions may be made to support the retired IHM Sisters c/o the IHM Sisters Retirement Fund, IHM Center, 2300 Adams Avenue, Scranton, Pa 18509.
Sister Josephine D’Agostino, S.C., formerly Sister Marion Paschal, a Sister of Charity-Halifax for 67 years, died April 29 at age 85.
Sister Josephine was missioned at St. Sylvester School, Brooklyn, as a seventh-grade teacher (1962-66). She served as principal of Our Lady of the Cenacle School, Richmond Hill (1978-83); administrator of Holy Spirit School, Brooklyn (1993-97); and a teacher at Dominican Commercial H.S, Jamaica. (1985-86).
Sister Josephine was pastoral assistant at Saint Dominic Parish in Brooklyn (1986-93). She also ministered in many schools in Staten Island and in the Diocese of Rockville Centre. Sister Josephine resided at Saint Barnabas Convent, Bellmore, from 2018 until her death. She is survived by her nephew, Joseph Wickert, her nieces Mary Ann Collela and Linda Laner, and all her sisters in community.
A funeral Mass and burial was held May 7 at St. Barnabas Parish, Bellmore. Interment was held at Saint John’s Cemetery, Middle Village.
Sister Jane Muller, OP, of the Sisters of St. Dominic of Amityville, died May 20 at age 87. Her life as a Sister of St. Dominic extended through ministry and prayer to many people in many places during her almost 70 years of devoted service.
Answering God’s call to religious life, Jane spent her high school years at the Juniorate in Water Mill.
Jane entered the Novitiate in September 1951 and received the habit and her religious name, Sister Adam Joseph, in August 1952. She taught elementary grades at St. Joseph School in Astoria, for nine years before moving to Dominican Commercial High School in Jamaica, Queens, where she became a devoted teacher of mathematics for five years.
During this time, she was studying at St. John’s University for her Bachelor of Science and her Master of Arts in Mathematics at Manhattan College. She continued teaching at Queen of the Rosary High School, Amityville. There, she developed an interest in the world of computers. She used her knowledge to assist religious congregations with their Social Security benefits.
Sister Jane earned a Doctorate from California University for Advanced Studies in Management/Computer Science. She served in the Rockville Centre Diocesan data center as an applications programmer and later worked in congregational services as assistant to the treasurer in 1976.
Through membership in the National Association of Treasurers of Religious Institutes, Jane was a professional presenter and consultant across the country. In the late ‘80s, Jane worked closely with Congressmen Tom Downey of New York and Pete Stark of California, as well as Senator Patrick Moynihan of New York. She was influential in their working to change the law in order that Medicare would be the primary care provider of medical insurance for religious over 65, rather than their religious congregations.
A Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated on May 25. Interment in the Sisters Cemetery in Amityville followed the Mass.
