Obituary

 

Sister Mary Mark Lowery, IHM

Sister Mary Mark Lowery, IHM, (formerly known as Sister M. St. Mark) of the Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary died on Friday, August 17, 2018, at Our Lady of Peace Residence in Scranton.

She was born on February 10, 1930 in Pittsburgh, PA, and given the name Catherine Teresa. She was the daughter of the late Michael and Catherine Coyne Lowery. She entered the IHM Congregation on September 8, 1948 and made her temporary profession of vows on May 8, 1951 and her final profession of vows on August 2, 1954.  

Sister Mary Mark served as a teacher in the following schools: St. Rose Elementary School in Carbondale, PA, from 1951 to 1954; Our Lady Queen of Martyrs Elementary School in Forest Hills, NY, from 1954 to 1956; Little Flower Elementary School in Bethesda, MD, from 1956 to 1964; St. Ambrose Elementary School in Bridgeport, CT, from 1978 to 1979; and Blessed Sacrament Elementary School in Staten Island, NY, from 1990 to 2000.

She served as a principal at the following schools: Sacred Heart Elementary School in Mt. Holly, NJ, from 1964 to 1970; St. John the Baptist Elementary School in Pittsburgh, PA, from 1970 to 1974; Holy Rosary Elementary School in Scranton, PA, from 1979 to 1983; and Our Lady of Perpetual Help Elementary School in Rocky Mount, NC, from 1983 to 1990.

Sister Mary Mark also served as formation director for the IHM Congregation in Scranton, PA, from 1974 to 1978; administrator of the IHM Center in Scranton, PA, from 2000 to 2011; director of resident services at the IHM Center from 2011 to 2013; and volunteer at Our Lady of Peace Residence from 2013 to 2014.

From 2014 until the time of her death, Sister Mary Mark was a prayer minister at Our Lady of Peace Residence in Scranton.

She received a Bachelor of Science degree in elementary education/English; a Master of Science degree in education from Marywood College and a certificate in administration from Duquesne University.

She is preceded in death by four brothers, Michael, John, Martin F., Patrick, and a sister, Margaret Sullivan.

She is survived by a brother, Brother Mark Lowery, FSC, of Pittsburgh, PA, nieces and nephews, grandnieces and grandnephews. She is also survived by members of the IHM Congregation.

The funeral will be Wednesday, August 22, 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, August 21, between 3:00 p.m. and 5:00 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.

Funeral:  https://video.ibm.com/recorded/116705990

Vespers: https://video.ibm.com/recorded/116693227


Reprinted from "In Memoriam" section of Journey, Fall 2018 issue

Reflection given by Sister Kathryn Clauss, IHM Congregation Vice-President

Sister Mary Mark Lowery,  Funeral  August 22, 2018

What a feast of love we experienced yesterday as stories were told and memories of Mary Mark were brought to life through words, tears and laughter.We witnessed how she was rooted in God and lived life as a clear and prophetic witness to the presence of God in our world. We heard how she modeled compassion in her attentiveness and response to the joys and sorrows of those she encountered. Stories witnessed her spacious hospitality and deep respect that were hallmarks of her service to children and adults. As the stories were told, I had a sense that each of us remembered Mark’s quiet way of embracing you in her gaze, of attending to you in her careful listening, and leaving you with an awareness of God’s loving presence in your time together.

Yesterday’s stories prepared us to hear anew today’s scripture passages. Like Abram in the book of Genesis, Mary Mark went forth from her family and from her parents’ home to the many places where God drew her and where those she met found blessings in her. Like the early community of believers, Mark spent a lifetime being of one heart and one mind with her family, her IHM sisters, her friends and those she served. Like Mary in Luke’s Gospel, Mark was deeply aware of Jesus’ presence and listened closely to his words. Like Martha, she was sister and servant as she attended to all  the details of hospitality while never losing sight of those she served. Over the course of Mark’s life in ministry and in communion with others, she learned and modeled for us the delicate balance of spirituality and action. Her life of prayer drew her to God and opened her eyes to the needs of the world expressed by those around her. Her response to prayer was a life of joyful, loving service. Mark’s life of service drew her back to her need for God and her deep desire for and commitment to contemplative prayer.

Today, as we accompany Sister Mary Mark on her final journey to God let us be aware that she fulfilled her covenant with God.

Sisters Gracette Baker and Judy Ziegler will place Mark’s bible on her casket as a reminder that our Sister Mary Mark heard God’s Word, she staked her life on it and it is Jesus, the Word of God, who now welcomes her home.