Sister Dorothy Rita Lancor, IHM
Sister Dorothy Rita Lancor, IHM, (formerly known as Sister M. Bertille) of the Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary died on Wednesday, May 2, 2012, at Our Lady of Peace Residence in Scranton, PA.
She was born on April 9, 1919, in Providence, RI. She was the daughter of the late Joseph H. and Mary Clarke Lancor. She entered the IHM Congregation on September 8, 1937, made her temporary profession of vows on May 8, 1940, and final profession of her vows on August 2, 1943.
Sister Dorothy served as a teacher at the following schools: Our Lady of Good Counsel Elementary School in Inwood, NY, from 1955 to 1959; St. Basil Elementary School in Dushore, PA, from 1964 to 1965; St. Mary Elementary School in Goldsboro, NC, from 1967 to 1971 and 1986 to 1991; Immaculate Conception Elementary School in Lock Haven, PA, from 1971 to 1976; St. Thomas Aquinas Elementary School in Archbald, PA, from 1976 to 1978; St. Matthew Elementary School in East Stroudsburg, PA, from 1979 to 1980; and St. Leo Elementary School in Ashley, PA, from 1983 to 1984. She served as an instructor at St. Patrick’s Catechetcial Center in Milford, PA, from 1959 to 1963; and St. Peter’s Catechetcial Center in Wellsboro, PA, from 1963 to 1964 and 1965 to 1967.
Sister also served as a staff member at Catholic Child Care Center in Hollidaysburg, PA, from 1978 to 1979; librarian at Nativity Elementary School in Scranton, PA, from 1980 to 1983; sacristan at Immaculate Conception Shrine in Washington, DC, from 1984 to 1986; staff member at the IHM Center in Scranton, PA, from 1991 to 1992; parish minister at St. John the Baptist Parish in Pittsburgh, PA, from 1992 to 2004; receptionist at the IHM Center in Scranton, PA, from 2004 to 2005 and sacristan at the Marian Community Hospital and St. Joseph Convent, both in Carbondale, PA, from 2005 to 2008.
From 2008 until the time of her death, Sister Dorothy served as a prayer minister at Our Lady of Peace Residence in Scranton.
She received a Bachelor degree in music education from Marywood College.
She was preceded in death by two brothers, Joseph and Frederick, and two sisters, Helen Louise (infant) and Margaret Mary Coyle.
She is survived by a sister-in-law, Florence Lancor of Tampa, FL, and nieces and nephews, including Robert Coyle of Alexandria, VA.
The funeral will be Tuesday, May 8, at 10:00 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 Monday, May 7, between 3:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. A prayer service will be held at 4:00 p.m. Interment will follow Mass on Tuesday 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.
Reprinted from "In Memoriam" section of Journey, Summer 2012 issue
Though I’ve known Dorothy for only seven of her ninety-three years, I hope these few reflections will resonate as true with those of you who have known her much longer.
Dorothy was open: open-minded and open-hearted. She had her own opinions, of course, but she could talk and listen to other perspectives than her own.
Dorothy was very generous with her talent and human energies. She was a teacher, musician, sacristan, parish worker, and she had a good eye for other people’s needs. Dorothy was hospitable. She got the Martha/Mary balance perfectly, I think.
She was practicably hospitable: offering a good porch chair, a cold drink, goodies she’d received from a Pittsburgh friend, and she loved to sit down to talk and listen. Conversation was a big part of Dorothy’s hospitality.
In these months when she was confined to her room and her eyesight was failing, she so appreciated those of you who came and sat and talked or read to her.
Dorothy was a spiritual seeker. She gave several summers to being part of the congregation’s Houses of Prayer, and she made a thirty-day retreat at Verona. I think Dorothy was part of a parish prayer group in most — if not all — of her many missions.
And at 88, Dorothy joined a “circle of grace” to mentor three women into our IHM Associate Program.
Dorothy, we praise God for your open, generous, hospitable, prayerful life among us!
by Maria Rose Kelly, IHM
