Sister M. Dositheus Cawley, IHM

Sister M. Dositheus Cawley, IHM, of the Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary died on Friday, July 20, 1945 at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Carbondale, PA.

She was born on December 17, 1867 in Pittston, Pennsylvania, and given the name of Mary (Mame). She was the daughter of the late Patrick and Ann Gordon Cawley. She entered the IHM Congregation on September 7, 1892, received the religious habit on April 3, 1893, and made profession of her vows on July 1, 1895.

Sister Dositheus served as a teacher at Our Lady of Mt. Carmel School in Altoona, PA, and at schools within the Diocese of Scranton, PA.

Sister Dositheus also served in child care for resident children at St. Joseph’s Foundling Home in Scranton, PA. She served as superior at St. Mary’s Home in Cresson, PA.

She was preceded in death by two brothers, William Joseph (infant) and Reverend Patrick.

She is surived by a brother, John of Pittston, PA; four sisters, Bridget English of Pittston, PA, Sister M. Anicetus, IHM of Scranton, PA, Ann and Elizabeth, both of Pittston, PA; nieces and nephews, including our Sister Mary Stephen, IHM, of the Church of the Nativity in Scranton, PA; grandnieces and grandnephews, including our Sister M. James Francis, IHM, of the Marian Convent in Scranton, PA.

The funeral will be held on Monday, July 23 at 9:30 am at St. Catherine’s Church in Moscow, PA. Interment will follow at St. Catherine’s Cemetery, Moscow. Friends may call on Sunday afternoon or evening at St. Agnes Place in Elmurst, PA.

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“On the eighth day of November, 1890, the charter members appeared before the court and signed the act of incorporation. Three days later the charter was granted, the recorder of deeds testifying: “Before me, the Recorder of Deeds of Lackawanna County, appeared Margaret Gunster, Anna Duggan, and Mary Kelly, three of the subscribers of the above and foregoing certificate of Incorporation of Saint Joseph’s Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children and Aged Persons, and in due form of law acknowledged the same to be their act and deed.”

The house on Monroe Avenue was soon overcrowded, and through the exertions of the society, a more commodious building on Jefferson Avenue was provided. More Sisters were required for the work and Sister M. Justina and Sister M. Dositheus were appointed to assist. Finally a magnificent and permanent home was secured for the hapless little one through the efforts of Reverend James O’Reilly, rector of the Cathedral, and two members of the society, Mrs. Ellen O’Donnell and Mrs. P. J. Horan.”

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. 199, 200

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“In 1910 the Sisters of the Immaculate Heart were asked to take charge of the parochial school of our Lady of Mount Carmel in Altoona. Right Reverend Bishop Garvey had recently formed a new parish in the heart of the Italian District of Altoona and had given the charge of the parish to the Fathers of the Third Order Regulars of Saint Francis. The Very Reverend Jerome Zazzara, T.O.R., D.D., who was at the time Provincial of the Order, was appointed pastor. He built a parochial school, and at Bishop Garvey’s suggestion applied for the Sisters of the Immaculate Heart. The work was entrusted to Sister M. Edward, who with Sister M. Henrietta, Sister M. Dositheus, Sister M. Leonard, Sister M. Cosmas, Sister M. Immaculate, Sister Anna Maria, and Sister M. Stephanie arrived in Altoona on August 21, 1911.

The school was opened in September, 1911. The opening Mass was celebrated by the Right Reverend Bishop. Three hundred pupils were enrolled on opening day. The school proved inadequate to accommodate the ever-increasing number, and a new school more modern in its appointments, was erected in the second year.”

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. 321, 322