Sister Marian Denise Walsh, IHM

Sister Marian Denise Walsh, IHM, (formerly known as Sister M. St. Dennis) of the Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary died on December 18, 2003 at the Marian Convent in Scranton, PA.

Daughter of the late John and Sarah Higgins Walsh, she was born September 19,1919 in Dunmore, PA. She entered the IHM Congregation on February 2, 1942 and made her temporary profession of vows on August 2, 1944 and her final profession of vows on August 2, 1947.

Sister Marian Denise served as a teacher, social worker, administrator, and advocate during her sixty years as an IHM Sister. She served as administrator of St. Joseph Center in Scranton from 1975 to 1991. Following this she became a staff member at Marywood College School of Social Work and later the Coordinator of Act 504 and Advisor to Students with Disabilities at Marywood College. She also served as a teacher in schools located in Idaho and New Jersey; as well as social worker and supervisor at St. Joseph Children’s and Maternity Hospital in Scranton; and as executive director of the Brooklyn Diocese Catholic Charities in Brooklyn, NY.

She served as president of the Pennsylvania Association of Resources for People with Mental Retardation as well as board member for numerous institutions and agencies. She received honorary doctorates from King’s College, The University of Scranton, and Marywood College. Recently she was awarded the John J. Baldi Award for “excellence in the development of services that support individuals with mental disabilities and their families” from the Lackawanna, Susquehanna, and Wayne Counties Mental Health/Mental Retardation Board.

She served as a pastoral visitor and prayer minister at the Marian Convent from 1999 until the time of her death.

She received a Bachelor of Science degree in education from Marywood College, and a Master of Social Work degree from Fordham University, New York, NY.

She was preceded in death by two brothers, John, and Reverend Dennis, C.P.; and a sister, Sister Marie Dolores, R.G.S.

She is survived by a nephew, Robert J. Walsh of Trooper, PA; a niece, Ann Wright of Holmdel, NJ; grandnephews; and friends, Sr. Mary Joan Kelleher, IHM, and Marysia L. Reilly.

The funeral will be Monday, December 22 at 10:30 a.m. with Mass of Christian Burial at the Marian Convent followed by interment at St. Catherine Cemetery, Moscow. Friends may call at the Marian Convent on Sunday, December 21, between 2:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m.

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.