Sister Mary Elizabeth will long be remembered by her students and their families for her kindness and compassion, as well as for all the knowledge she imparted to them.
Sr. Mary Elizabeth Phelan

Sister Mary Elizabeth Phelan (Sister Raymond Marian) was born March 30, 1937 in Staten Island. The daughter of John Raymond and Lillian Mary Heddle Phelan, Mary Elizabeth attended P.S. 20 and Saint Peter High School for Girls before entering the Sisters of Charity of New York on September 8, 1954. Sister Raymond Marian earned a BS in Science from the College of Mount Saint Vincent and an MS in Biology from the College of Saint Rose. She later earned NYS permanent certification in teaching Science K through 12.

Sister Mary Elizabeth began her ministry in education teaching the primary grades. She taught first and second grades at Saint John the Baptist and Assumption, both in Brooklyn. She was then assigned to Our Lady of Good Counsel, Manhattan, where she taught fifth grade. Sister was the sent to Immaculate Heart of Mary, Scarsdale, where she taught seventh and eighth grade Science. In 1966, Sister Mary Elizabeth was missioned to Holy Trinity in Mamaroneck where she taught Junior High Science and Math for the next eighteen years and became the principal for one year. In 1987, she went to teach at Saint Raymond Academy for Girls, where she worked for the next ten years. Sister Mary Elizabeth’s crippling arthritis hastened her retirement, but she continued to keep busy with volunteer services at Mount Saint Vincent Convent and the Convent of Mary the Queen. In 2004, Sister Mary Elizabeth moved to the Convent of Mary the Queen, and continued her volunteer service. Along with approximately twenty other Sisters of Charity, Sister Elizabeth moved to Kittay House in the Bronx in 2014. She received training as a hospice volunteer and used her many gifts in being a presence to the dying.

An educator par excellence, Sister Mary Elizabeth will long be remembered by her students and their families for her kindness and compassion, as well as for all the knowledge she imparted to them. Known as Liz by her friends, she was always thoughtful of others and continued to find ways to help schools and other Sister of Charity missions through fundraising activities. She was a computer whiz and was always willing and able to assist the less technically savvy among us. We rejoice with her now as she is welcomed into the Kingdom by our loving God, her family and friends, and all the Sisters of Charity who have gone before her. Be at peace, Sister Mary Elizabeth.

 

Date of Death
July 2, 2017

Age
80

Wake & Mass of Christian Burial
Assembly Room
Mount Saint Vincent Convent
6301 Riverdale Avenue
Bronx, NY 10471
718.601.5370

Thursday, July 6, 1 pm – 3 pm
Mass of Christian Burial to follow at 3 pm

Burial
Burial of cremains will take place at a later date at the Cemetery of Mount Saint Vincent

 

Missions

Diocese of Brooklyn

  • St. John the Baptist, Brooklyn
    1957–59, Teacher, Gr. 1
  • Assumption, Brooklyn
    1959–62, Teacher, Gr. 1–2

Archdiocese of New York

  • Our Lady of Good Counsel, Manhattan
    1962–65, Teacher, Gr. 5
  • Immaculate Heart of Mary, Scarsdale
    1965–66, Teacher, Science 7–8 Grads
  • Holy Trinity School, Mamaroneck
    1966–84, Teacher, Science 6–7, Math
    1985–86, Principal, Elementary School
  • St. Raymond Academy for Girls, Bronx
    1987–97, Ancillary Services