Mary Powers, CSJP (1937-2023)
The most frequently heard description of Sister Mary Powers was that “she was a very intelligent, caring, loving woman.” Throughout her life Sister Mary Powers seemed to have the ability to bring gentle joy and peace into any situation. She was the middle child of a family of seven, but never in her life seemed to suffer from Middle Child Syndrome.
By the time Sister Mary was 22, she had already earned her Bachelor of Science in Nursing from the University of Portland in Oregon. She and her sister Nancy lived for a while at Saint Teresa Residence, a home for young, single women founded by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Peace in Seattle, Washington. There she met a fellow resident, Connie Krieger, with whom she would share a lifelong friendship. On a day trip to Bellingham, Washington, Sisters Mary and Connie were so impressed by Sister Rosarii Metzgar, CSJP, the then novice director, that they entered the community that fall.
After taking vows, Sister Mary was assigned to Sacred Heart Hospital in Eugene, Oregon, where she remained for 18 years. She enjoyed her role as Director of Nursing and was much admired by the students. In her free time, Sister Mary, a great lover of music, became an accomplished musician. She was also fond of wordplay and was noted for her ability to create puns.
In 1969, her ministry of nursing was interrupted when she was elected Assistant Province Leader, a position she held until 1976. Her wisdom and her faithfulness to the mission of the community helped steer it through a time of great and rapid change. After her years in leadership, Sister Mary reinvented her ministry once more by acquiring a Master of Arts in Pastoral Ministry in 1977. She subsequently created and undertook a pastoral minister role at a home for seniors in downtown Seattle. In the mid-1980s, Sister Mary continued her pastoral care work at Snoqualmie Valley Hospital in Washington, staying with the hospital until its closure. She spent later years attending to the care of several of her family members in Oregon.
In 1999 Sister Mary became an active member of the community of St. Mary-on-the-Lake in Bellevue, Washington, where she served as sacristan and led the music for liturgies. Her deteriorating eyesight in her later years limited her ministry, yet her final years were lived out with the same grace and gentle dignity that were the hallmark of her personality. On the occasion of her 70th jubilee in 2019, Mary said: “My years as a Sister of Saint Joseph of Peace have been full of changes, and many of those changes are for the good. I’m especially grateful for the changes that helped us to get to know each other as persons. I’m thankful for the opportunities the community has given me for self-improvement.”
When you hear the name Sister Mary Powers, you automatically think of someone who quietly epitomized the mission and charism of the Sisters of Saint Joseph of Peace.