Compiled
by
Adam Dickerson
Anna Rita Curran
Anna Rita Curran, 97, died one week after suffering a heart attack at
Sacred Heart Manor Nursing Home on Feb. 15, 2007. She was born Dec. 1,
1909 to James Curran and Catherine Harvey Curran. She attended nine grades
at Nativity B.V.M. and one year of commercial school, after which she
went to work at Wanamaker’s department store as secretary to the
store detective. She worked there for 48 years, until her retirement.
She participated in the John Wanamaker Commercial Institute Camp, where
she was a Second Sergeant in Company G. In the 1970s, she was forced to
move, due to construction of Rte. I-95. The last 30 years of her life,
before going to Sacred Heart Manor Nursing Home, were spent in Ascension
Parish. She was a member of the Third Order of Norbertines. She was still
reading and writing shorthand at the age of 97. A funeral Mass was celebrated
on Feb. 20 at Sacred Heart Manor. She was buried at Holy Cross Cemetery.
She is survived by Dorrie Dombrowski and other half-grandnieces and nephews.
Sister Anne Kathleen Coyle
Sister Anne Kathleen Coyle, formerly Margaret M. Coyle, died Feb. 26,
2007. She was 75. Born in Philadelphia, she served for 43 years in elementary
education in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. Her last ministry was at
St. Monica School. She also served in the Dioceses of Allentown and Arlington,
Va. The funeral Mass was celebrated March 1 at Camilla Hall. Burial was
at Immaculata. She is survived by a brother, Thomas; three nieces, Kris
Rice, Amy Roche and Kathy Harlacker; great nieces, a great nephew, and
a cousin, Sister Mary E. Coyle, I.H.M., as well as members of her congregation.
She was predeceased by two sisters: Frances Duffy and Anne Hassett, and
a nephew, Joseph.
Sister Jacqueline Schuster
Sister Jacqueline Schuster, O.S.F., formerly Anna Julia Schuster, died
in Assisi House in Aston, on March 5, 2007. She was 96, and had been a
professed member of the Sisters of St. Francis of Philadelphia for 73
years. She was born and raised in Camden, N.J. She earned a bachelor’s
degree in education from Mount St. Mary University, Emmitsburg, Md. She
ministered primarily in education in the Dioceses of Allentown and Wilmington,
Del., where she taught for 33 years. She also served 15 years in the Archdiocese
of Philadelphia, teaching at All Saints School in Bridesburg and St. Bonaventure
School. From 1997 to 2001, she lived at the St. Agnes Medical Center convent
and volunteered in the accounting office. In 2001, she moved to Assisi
House, where she served in prayer ministry until her death. A funeral
Mass was celebrated March 9 in Assisi House. Burial was at Our Lady of
Angels Cemetery, Aston. She is survived by her nieces and nephews, and
by her Franciscan family.
Father Ralph Vincent Shuhler
Father Ralph Vincent Shuhler, O.S.A., died March 6, 2007 at St. Thomas
of Villanova Monastery on the campus of Villanova University. He was 94.
Born and baptized in Salina, Kan., he was the son of Joseph and Caroline
Betz Shuhler. He was the youngest of 10 boys, all of whom have preceded
him in death. His family moved to Lehigh County in Pennsylania, where
he was raised until he became a postulant in the Augustinian Order. He
professed his solemn vows in 1936 and was ordained May 30, 1939, at the
Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, Washington, D.C. He then completed
a doctorate in Canon law at The Catholic University of America. His ministry
included teaching and parish work. In Philadelphia, he served at St. Augustine
Parish and St. Rita Parish. He was also elected assistant general in the
general chapter of the order, and served in Rome in that capacity. A funeral
Mass was celebrated March 8 at St. Thomas Church, Villanova University
Campus, Villanova, Pa. Burial was on March 9 at Calvary Cemetery, West
Conshohocken. He is survived by 26 nieces and nephews, 36 grand-nieces
and nephews, and nine great grand-nieces and nephews.