Sister Maria Regina Loures, IHM
Sister Maria Regina Loures, IHM, of the Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary died on Wednesday, April 27, 2016, at Our Lady of Peace Residence, in Scranton.
She was born on January 16, 1939, in Brooklyn, NY, and given the name Arlene. She was the daughter of the late George and Mary Connolly Loures. She entered the IHM Congregation on February 2, 1957, and made her temporary profession of vows on August 4, 1959, and her final profession of vows on August 15, 1964.
Sister Maria Regina served as a teacher at the following schools: Little Flower Elementary School in Bethesda, MD, from 1959 to 1965; St. Patrick Elementary School in Scranton, PA, from 1965 to 1966; and St. Raphael Elementary School in St. Petersburg, FL, from 1966 to 1968. She also taught summer school classes at Marywood College in Scranton, PA, in 1975 and 1976.
Sister served as principal at: St. John the Baptist Elementary School in Pittsburgh, PA, from 1974 to 1976; and Our Lady of Mercy Elementary School in Forest Hills, NY, from 1976 to 1978.
She also served as an education consultant for the IHM Congregation in Scranton, PA, from 1970 to 1974; sector superior for the IHM Congregation from 1978 to 1986; co-vicar for religious for the Diocese of Rockville Centre, NY, from 1986 to 1998; associate retreat director at Bishop Molloy Passionist Retreat House in Jamaica, NY, from 1999 to 2007; administrator of Our Lady of Grace Center in Manhasset, NY, from 2008 to 2013. She was a retreat director and group facilitator in the New York City and Long Island areas from 2013 to 2016.
From 2016 until the time of her death, Sister Maria Regina was 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 Education degree in administration and supervision from Duquesne University.
She is preceded in death by a brother-in-law, Raymond Connolly.
She is survived by a brother and sister-in-law, George and Maggie of Franklin Square, NY, a sister, Maryellen (Ellie) Connolly of Rockaway Point, NY, nieces and nephews, and a great niece and great nephews. She is also survived by members of the IHM Congregation.
The funeral will be Saturday, April 30, at 9:30 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 Friday, April 29, 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 Saturday 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/86216427
Vespers: https://video.ibm.com/recorded/86195400
Reflection given by Sister Ellen Maroney, IHM Congregation President
Sister Maria Regina Loures, Funeral April 30, 2016
Some people come into our lives, leave footprints on our hearts, and we are never the same. - Flavia Weedn
It has been said that great women and men, those who rule over empires or compose intricate symphonies or make a life-saving medical discovery, are giants who change their whole world. But they usually do so from a distance, from a height most of us
never dream of reaching. Maria Regina may not have achieved such world renowned recognition (at least not yet!), but yesterday, as we shared some wonderful stories about her during the wake service, it is clear that a special woman walked among us, and changed
an awful lot of our worlds by the very large footprint she left on our hearts.
We knew Reg as sister, educator, director, mentor, and so much more, but mostly as friend. She had an uncanny ability to light up a room or a conversation the moment she entered one, usually with her exuberance and Reg, and they knew it immediately. It
might be as simple and as profound as that. She was genuine and honest in her relationships and we never had to wonder or guess where she stood on issues. I said yesterday that I think that may be due to her Brooklyn roots, but that sense of integrity and authenticity
was a hallmark of her entire life.
Throughout her years of religious life, Reg faithfully served her God and others with a joyful, vibrant presence in our world. Her journey brought her into the lives of countless IHM sisters and other women and men religious, children, parents and teachers in the
schools in which she served, and so many others who sought her direction and inspiration. Through a caring and listening heart, she delighted us all with her friendship and never faltered as our companion on her journey to her God. Reg saw each person through
the lens of her own experience of a compassionate, loving God and she shared her gifts with honesty, passion, sensitivity, courage, and humor. She challenged us to keep searching for our own truer selves and to know the gift we are to others in this world. She
invited us along on her journey to seek a better world for all.
Reg’s goodness and deep faith were rooted in her family. Our prayers today bless the memory of her parents, Mary and George, and her brother-in-law, Raymond, whose love for her on earth was only a glimpse of the love she now experiences with them in the presence
of God.
Those of us who remain behind to continue our life’s work will draw upon the strength Reg left us as her legacy. We pray especially for her sister, Ellie, her brother, George and his wife, Maggie, her nieces and nephews, and her great niece and great nephews. Our
prayers are also with her dear friend, Ursula, her band members and the sisters in her mission group, the Sisters of St. Joseph with whom Reg lived: Sisters Frances Mary and Ruth Ann, and their Regional, Sister Ginny, the administrators, staff, and sisters here
at Our Lady of Peace, her many IHM friends, and all who knew and loved her.
The poet, Mary Oliver, wrote, “When it’s over, I don’t want to wonder if I have made of my life something particular and real... I don’t want to end up simply having visited this world.” To be merely a visitor, without commitment or investment in others
and her world, was never a part of Reg’s DNA. She planted her roots deeply and entered fully into the lives of all she met wherever she was. Her presence among us challenged and encouraged us, stretched and comforted us. Her compassion for others softened
our hearts; her searching for life’s meaning drew us in and ever closer to the God in whom she had absolute trust. We are forever changed and forever grateful because Reg was in our lives. There is a silence, a quiet sadness, that moves through us today, but little
by little, we will begin to remember not just that Reg died, but that she lived, and her life gave us memories and lessons too beautiful to forget and a footprint forever embedded in our hearts.
George will now place the scriptures on Reg’s casket, for indeed Reg heard the Word of God, she staked her life upon it and received life to the full... the Word now beckons her home.
