Sr. Colette McManus RSHM

A Religious of the Sacred Heart of Mary for 69 years, Sister Colette McManus, RSHM, died on Sunday, February 24, 2013, at the age of 88 at Regina Residence in Orange. One of ten children, she was born in Dublin, Ireland in 1924. She entered the RSHM Congregation in 1942 in Ferrybank, Ireland, and afterwards did her undergraduate studies out of Oxford University. She then came to Tarrytown, New York where she received a BA in English from Marymount College and an MA from Fordham University. Later she studied French and Spanish in Paris and Barcelona. Sister Colette was a born educator and her entire active ministry was devoted to secondary teaching and/or administration at Marymount, Fifth Avenue, 1946-1951; Marymount, Bogata, 1961 – 1966, Marymount, Barcelona, 1966-1968; Marymount, Paris, 1968-l973; and Marymount, Westwood, 1973-1991. Sister Colette inspired a love of learning in her students and challenged them to be critical thinkers, women committed to service and justice, and to developing their full potential. She was a woman of vision and a risk taker and was Head of Marymount High School in Westwood for 18 years. From 1991 on, her active retirement years took her to Marymount in Paris, the Mother House in Béziers, France, and back to the Los Angeles area. In 2008 she retired to Casa Guadalupe and later to Regina Residence where her sense of humor and love of music endeared her to everyone, and where she received such wonderful care from the Sisters of St. Joseph of Orange, the Directors and the nursing staff. She is predeceased by her parents, PJ and Mary, her brothers, Kevin, Desmond, Dermot, and Sean, her sisters, Bernadette, Deirdre and Rita. She is survived by her sisters Sheila Ellis and Fran Dowling (Michael) and many nieces and nephews, grandnieces and grandnephews. She will be greatly missed by her RSHM Sisters, her family, the myriads of students, faculty, staff, parents, who crossed her path and her many friends throughout the world. Mass of the Resurrection will be at Sacred Heart Chapel, Loyola Marymount University, 1 LMU Drive, Los Angeles, 90045, this coming Saturday, March 2, at 9:30 a.m., followed by a Reception on the campus. Burial will be at Holy Cross Cemetery, 5835 W. Slauson Ave., Culver City, at 12:15 p.m. In lieu of flowers in her memory, donations may be made to the Sister Colette McManus Scholarship Fund, Marymount High School, c/o Jacqueline Landry, 10643 Sunset Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90077, or to the RSHM Retirement Fund, c/o Sister Mary Genino, RSHM, 441 N. Garfield Avenue, Montebello, CA 90640.