Sister M. Elizabeth Lynch, IHM
Sister M. Elizabeth Lynch, IHM, of the Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary died on Sunday, March 31, 1929.
She was born on May 4, 1857 in White Haven, Pennsylvania, and given the name Rose. She was the daughter of the late Francis and Catharine Cox Lynch. She entered the IHM Congregation on November 24, 1886, received the religious habit on March 1, 1887, and made profession of her vows on August 2, 1889.
In 1903, Sister Elizabeth was one of sixteen sisters who formed the first community in inhabit the new motherhouse, Mount Saint Mary's of the Immaculate Conception, located on the grounds of Marywood College in Scranton, PA.
During the Spanish Influenza of 1918, Sister Elizabeth served as a care-taker to those afflicted by this deadly epidemic in the greater Scranton area.
Interment is at St. Catherine’s Cemetery in Moscow, Pennsylvania.
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.
"One can imagine with what intense fervor these favored ones received their Eucharistic Guest when He came to take possession of the tabernacle His daughters of the Immaculate Heart had prepared for Him, and how they implored Him to make it for them a home of purity, peace, and prayer. The professed Sisters who formed the new community were Mother Superior, Mother Francis, Sister M. DeSales, Sister M. Charles, Sister M. Genevieve, Sister M. Theresa, Sister M. Matilda, Sister M. Felicitas, Sister M. Elizabeth, Sister M. Blanche, Sister M. Immaculata, Sister M. Urban, Sister M. Joseph, Sister M. Borromeo, Sister M. Alphonsus, Sister M. Edmund, and Sister M. Inez. The following priests were present at the first Mass celebrated at Mount Saint Mary's: Reverend N. J. McManus, Reverend E. J. Melley, Reverend M. B. Donlin, Reverend M. E. Loftus, Reverend J. J. Moylan. Reverend J. A. O'Reilly, Reverend P. J. McManus, and Reverend J. J. Griffin. Reverend Fathers McManus and Griffin were assistants to the Right Reverend Bishop.
After the Mass the entire assemblage formed in procession and went through every part of the house, the Bishop blessing each portion as they went. Returning to the main reception hall, the Bishop invoked a blessing at the foot of the great Crucifix on the work of Christian education about to be commenced. The new mother house was named Mount Saint Mary's of the Immaculate Conception."
Excerpted from The Sisters of the I.H.M.: The Story of The Founding of The Congregation of the Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary and Their Work In The Scranton Diocese by Sister M. Immaculata Gillespie, IHM, P.J. Kenedy & Sons, NY, 1921, pgs. 281, 282
"Meanwhile the dreaded epidemic spread so rapidly throughout the city that it was impossible to procure trained nurses for all the patients who required attention. On Saturday evening, October 5th, through the advice of our Right Reverend Bishop, a call was made for one of our Sisters to nurse one of the victims of the disease, Mr. Thomas Gerrity, whose life was fast ebbing away. Sister Elizabeth was sent to the home of the patient, but in spite of her earnest efforts to save him, Mr. Gerrity succumbed to the disease.
Sister M. Elizabeth was a forerunner in this work of mercy, for on the very next day, Mother Superior, at the request of the Right Reverend Bishop, sent many other Sisters out to the neglected poor."
Excerpted from The Sisters of the I.H.M.: The Story of The Founding of The Congregation of the Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary and Their Work In The Scranton Diocese by Sister M. Immaculata Gillespie, IHM, P.J. Kenedy & Sons, NY, 1921, p. 442
