Sister M. Anine Hopkins, IHM
Sister M. Anine Hopkins, IHM, of the Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary died on Saturday, May 21, 2022 at Our Lady of Peace Residence in Scranton, PA.
She was born on December 7, 1932, in Scranton, PA, and given the name Ann Marie. She was the daughter of the late Patrick and Anna Ferguson Hopkins. She entered the IHM Congregation on September 7, 1950, made her temporary profession of vows on August 2, 1953, and her final profession of vows on August 3, 1956.
Sister Anine served as a teacher at the following schools: St. Rita Elementary School in Dundalk, MD, from 1953 to 1960; Our Lady of Peace Elementary School in Clarks Green, PA, from 1960 to 1961; Holy Trinity Elementary School in Poughkeepsie, NY, from 1961 to 1966; St. Dominic Elementary School in Oyster Bay, NY, from 1966 to 1970; St. Ephrem Elementary School in Brooklyn, NY, from 1970 to 1975; St. Ann Elementary School in Devon, CT, from 1975 to 1977; St. Matthew Elementary School in Wilmington, DE, from 1977 to 1978; Holy Name of Jesus Elementary School in Forty Fort, PA, from 1978 to 1980; St. Raymond Elementary School in East Rockaway, NY, from 1980 to 1986; St. Patrick Elementary School in Scranton, PA, from 1986 to 1990; and Holy Rosary Elementary School in Scranton, PA, from 1990 to 1993.
Sister also served on the support staff at the Marian Convent and at Our Lady of Peace Residence in Scranton, PA, from 1993 to 2010.
From 2010 until the time of her death, Sister Anine was a prayer minister at Our Lady of Peace Residence.
She received a Bachelor of Science degree in elementary education from Marywood College.
She is preceded in death by a brother, Dr. Joseph.
She is survived by a sister-in-law, Maureen Hopkins of Easton, PA, nieces, nephews and cousins. She is also survived by the members of the IHM Congregation.
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.
Prayer of Remembrance and Funeral: https://video.ibm.com/recorded/131802425
Reflection given by Sister Ellen Maroney, IHM Congregation President
Sister M. Anine Hopkins, funeral May 27, 2022
“Dying comes before rising, death arrives before new birth.” - Joyce Rupp
How appropriate I think that we gather this morning and celebrate Anine’s return home to God on this feast of the Ascension. Both of the wonderful season of Easter that we have celebrated, and then today's great feast of Jesus’ ascension back to his father teach us a new the profound truth of those words of Joyce Rupp. Words that God’s love overcomes even death and remains in and with us through even these most difficult days, following the loss of our sister and also the twenty-one lives lost in Uvalde, Texas. That truth defined how Anine lived each day of her life and especially during these last years. Her quiet, joyful, humble spirit revealed her own inner peace and beauty, and came from her deep trust and faith in a God she really loved so totally, so completely. We knew Anine as a kind and generous person who had a deep love for her vocation as an IHM. Her faith was enlivened by her interest in and devotion to the life of the Little Flower, Teresa of Avila, and John of the Cross throughout her life. One of her greatest joys was to share stories in prayer about these saints and how their example and lives impacted so many others.
Anine was a bearer of God’s love, kindness and peace from her earliest days. A West Side girl from Scranton. Her given name was Ann Marie. Her parents raised her and her brother, Joe, to appreciate the values of faith and family, and that included neighbors and the larger community.
She entered the IHM Congregation after high school and became an endearing elementary school teacher. During her sixty-nine years as an IHM, Anine taught in elementary schools in five different states. Her young students from kindergarten to grade three enjoyed being in her classroom because of the enthusiasm and the joy she put into helping them master the important skills, and also, I think because of the love she showed each one of them. Her low-key approach and gentle wit captured them, and her patience and encouragement instilled a measure of confidence in those who had little or no confidence in their own ability. She brought them along. She helped them to grow.
After forty years in the classroom, Anine joined the support staff at the Marian Convent, and later here at OLP, visiting the sisters who were ill and companioning others to different appointments. Her compassion and quick smile brightened many a sister’s day for sure. She also helped out as a records clerk at the Marion Convent for several years. During this time, Anine became an avid letter writer to our representatives in Congress, and to some Presidents, urging them to take action on various social issues. She wrote in one of her letters that she considered that work of letter writing an important ministry, and she was very committed to it. And for the last twelve years, Anine served as a prayer minister here at Our Lady of Peace.
We were blessed by this special gift of Anine’s life with us. She never tried to be someone other than her true self. Her trust in God and her deep gratitude to God defined her life among us. She was ready with a word or an act of kindness or support. Her interest in the Carmelite Saints as I mentioned, strengthened and enriched her own rock-solid relationship with God, and was the source of her own gentle love and joy throughout her life.
Anine loved to sing and dance. She had a wonderful sense of humor. Her favorite song was anything by Elvis Presley. She would smile broadly when one of the aides would turn off one of the holy CDs, and put on one of Elvis's to enjoy.
We surely will miss Anine, but we rejoice that she's now at home with the God she loved, and is enjoying eternal life with her parents Anna and Patrick, and her brother, Joe. They are reunited with her, and she is welcomed into the great joy of eternal life with the God she loved and served so very well.
Our prayers are with her sister-in-law, Maureen, and her nieces, nephews and cousins, and all of their families. We pray to for Joan, and her many friends and sisters here at OLP, especially those who shared life with her in 1C. All of her former students, the administrators and staff at OLP, and all who knew and loved Anine.
“Kindness is my only guiding star. In its light I sail a straight route. I have my motto written on my sail, to live in love. For without love, deeds, even the most brilliant count as nothing.” - Saint Thérèse of Lisieux
Anine’s inner peace and tireless commitment to following in the footsteps of the saints she admired, truly made a difference in the lives of so many of her students and so many whose lives she touched. May her example continue to be our guiding star as we continue our own journeys back home to God.
And so, I now ask Joan to place the scriptures on Anine’s casket. For indeed she heard the word of God, she staked her life upon it, and received life to the full. The word now beckons Anine home.
