Sister Marylyn Harding, IHM
Sister Marylyn Harding, IHM, of the Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary died on Saturday, December 13, 2014 at Our Lady of Peace Residence in Scranton, PA.
She was born on November 30, 1915, in West Pittston, PA, and given the name Mary. She was the daughter of the late John and Ellen Earley Harding. She entered the IHM Congregation on September 8, 1933, made temporary profession of her vows on April 30, 1936, and final profession of her vows on August 1, 1939.
Sister Marylyn served as a teacher at the following schools: St. Bernardine Elementary School in Baltimore, MD, from 1936 to 1944; St. Mary Elementary School in Goldsboro, NC, from 1944 to 1948; Immaculate Conception Elementary School in Lock Haven, PA, from 1948 to 1949; St. Patrick Elementary School in Oneida, NY, from 1949 to 1950; St. Leo High School in Ashley, PA, from 1950 to 1953; Nativity of Our Lord Elementary School in Scranton, PA, from 1953 to 1955; St. Mary High School in Manhasset, NY, from 1955 to 1963; Central Catholic High School in Kingston, PA, from 1963 to 1967; Marywood Seminary High School in Scranton, PA, from 1967 to 1970; Maria Regina Diocesan High School in Uniondale, NY, from 1970 to 1979; and St. Dominic High School in Oyster Bay, NY, from 1979 to 1982.
She served as principal at Marywood Seminary High School in Scranton, PA, from 1967 to 1970.
Sister also served as a nursing assistant at the Marian Convent in Scranton, PA, from 1982 to 2002; and as a volunteer at the IHM Center in Scranton, PA, from 2002 to 2006.
From 2006 until the time of her death, Sister Marylyn served as a prayer minister at Our Lady of Peace Residence in Scranton.
She received a Bachelor of Arts degree in education from Marywood College, and a Master of Arts degree in Latin/Greek at the Catholic University of America.
She was preceded in death by two brothers, John and James, and four sisters, Gertrude Ross, Dorothy Lynch, Helen Wynne, and Agnes McDermott.
She is survived by nieces and nephews, and by the members of the IHM Congregation.
The funeral will be Wednesday, December 17, at 11:00 a.m. with Mass of Christian Burial at Our Lady of Peace Residence, 2300 Adams Avenue in Scranton. Friends may call at Our Lady of Peace Residence on Tuesday, December 16, between 3:00 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. A prayer service will be held at 4:00 p.m. Interment will follow Mass on Wednesday at St. Catherine’s Cemetery in Moscow, PA.
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.
Reflections given by Sister Ellen Maroney, IHM Congregation President 
Wake prayer
God of compassion and kindness, we gather today in deep gratitude for the life of our Sister Marylyn. Her presence among us was an ever-present reminder of your gentle and unconditional love for us. Her kindness toward all and her joyful, welcoming smile and spirit were the hallmarks of her life spent in service of her God, her family, and everyone she met.
Marylyn was eternally grateful for the gift of life and especially her life in community. Those fortunate enough to live and work with her knew the depth of her support and generosity. Her capacity to love others was rooted in her love of you, O God, and she shared that love tirelessly and faithfully even in her illness.
Her students knew her kindness and sincerity. Teachers who served with her experienced her untiring dedication and loving patience with them, her students, and their parents. As a nursing assistant at the Marian Convent and also as a volunteer at the IHM Center, Marylyn went out of her way to be of service to all. Her loving care, intelligenc,e and gentle perseverance were special gifts to all.
We pray today in remembrance of Marylyn’s parents, Ellen and John, and for her sisters, Gertrude, Dorothy, Helen, and Agnes, and her brothers, John and James, all of whom preceded her in death. We can be sure that they are celebrating a joyous reunion today in heaven.
Our prayers are with her nieces and nephews and their families today very specially, her IHM sisters, especially her dear and faithful friend, Sister Anselm, and all who knew and loved Marylyn. We ask the God of all consolation to comfort them at this time of loss.
We return our Sister Marylyn to the God she loved and served so well throughout her entire life. May her example lead all of us to understand the simple power of loving others as you, our God, love us.
Grant eternal rest to Marylyn, O Lord, and may your everlasting light shine upon her forever. Amen
Sister Marylyn Harding, Funeral 12/17/14
Good morning, Sisters and Friends,
As we gather in prayer to celebrate the beautiful gift of Sister Marylyn Harding’s life with us, I want to welcome members of her family and her friends who are able to be with us today. Our hearts are full of gratitude for this special woman who served God so faithfully throughout her life.
I want to take a moment to thank Father O’Malley, our celebrant, for being here with us this morning.
I want to thank in a special way, Srs. Jean, Eleanor Mary, and Mary Kay, the administrators here at Our Lady of Peace, and the wonderful nurses and staff who took such good care of Marylyn during these past eight years.
“When we honestly ask ourselves which persons in our lives mean the most to us, we often find that it is those who, instead of giving advice, solutions, or cures, have chosen rather to share our pain and touch our wounds with a warm and tender hand.” (Henri Nouwen)
As I reflected on Marylyn’s ninety-nine years of life, seventy-nine as an IHM, these words of Henri Nouwen capture the kind of person and friend she was to those who were fortunate enough to know her. Her love for others was deeply rooted in her love for God, and she shared that love tirelessly and faithfully throughout her life, even during her own illness. Her generous heart never sought attention or accolades, offering instead a gentle hand wherever needed, a kind word to lift another’s spirit, and a warm smile to brighten a friend’s day.
Marylyn’s life in ministry was centered on service to others. She was a teacher in several elementary and high schools in Maryland, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and New York, where she also was a principal for nine years. She served as a nursing assistant at the Marian Convent for twenty years and then became a volunteer at the IHM Center, where no task was too big or too small for her to undertake. She brought that same loving care and gracious spirit to Our Lady of Peace in 2006 when she became a prayer minister there.
We rejoice in the gift of Marylyn’s life with us. Her days among us spoke of her gentle determination and trust in God and her love for her family and friends, her IHM Congregation, and those to whom she ministered. Her life stands as an example to all of us of the simple power of loving others as our God loves us. To reference again the quote I used from Henri Nouwen, Marylyn, you truly were a person in our lives who meant the most to us.
Marylyn will be missed by all of us, but we rejoice that she is now at home with her God and enjoying eternal life with her parents Ellen and John, her sisters, Gertrude, Dorothy, Helen, and Agnes, and her brothers, John and James, who are now reunited with her as she is welcomed into the joy of eternal life by the God she loved and served so well.
Our prayers are with her nieces, Margaret, Kathy, and Mary and her nephew, and their families; her IHM sisters, especially her dear and faithful friend, Sister Anselm; and all who knew and loved Marylyn. We ask the God of all consolation to comfort them at this time of loss.
Anselm will now place the scriptures on Marylyn’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 her home.
Reprinted from "In Memoriam" section of Journey, Spring 2015 issue
Sister Marylyn’s life among us was an ever-present reminder of God’s gentle and unconditional love for us. Her kindness toward all and her joyful, welcoming smile and spirit were the hallmarks of her life spent in service of her God, her family and everyone she met.
Marylyn was the first of seven children born to Ellen and John Harding in West Pittston, PA. They were hard-working, very loving parents who nurtured their children through the uncertainties of the depression, mine layoffs and World War II. From them she learned resilience, resourcefulness and the gentleness, graciousness and self-emptying service they modeled in their daily lives.
Marylyn was eternally grateful for the gift of life and especially her life in community. Those fortunate enough to live and work with her knew the depth of her support and generosity. Her capacity to love others was rooted in love of God and she shared that love tirelessly and faithfully even in her illness.
Marylyn was a gifted teacher: her learning and authenticity won her students’ respect as did her kindness and sincerity. Teachers who served with her experienced her untiring dedication and loving patience with them and her students. As a nursing assistant at the Marian Convent and also as a volunteer at the IHM Center, Marylyn went out of her way to be of service to all. Her loving care, intelligence and gentle perserverance were special gifts to all.
We thank God for her presence among us these many years. As we treasure our memories of her beautiful smile, her prayerfulness and well-lived life, we ask our loving God to reward her with the fullness of everlasting life.
by Sister Anselm McShea, IHM
