Obituary: 69-Year Sister of Mercy, 88

WINDHAM – Sister Mary Madeline Erwin, 88, (formerly known a Sister M. Patricia), a Sister of Mercy for 69 years, died Friday, October 18, 2013, after a period of declining health. A native of Milton, Massachusetts, Sister Madeline was the daughter of Arthur H. and Madeline (Gallagher) Erwin.

Sister Madeline held a B.A. degree in history from Mount St. Mary College in Hooksett, New Hampshire. She pursued studies in medical technology at St. Francis Hospital in Hartford, Connecticut, and was a registered medical technologist. She also studied science at Notre Dame College in Manchester, New Hampshire, and received a diploma in creative writing from the Institute of Children’s Literature in Redding Ridge, Connecticut.

For many years, Sister Madeline taught at Catholic elementary schools throughout New Hampshire, including St. Joseph and Blessed Sacrament schools in Manchester; St. John in Laconia, St. Mary in Dover, St. Mary in Franklin, Sacred Heart in Nashua, and St. Rose of Lima in Littleton. She also taught special classes at Mount St. Mary Seminary in Nashua. She served as secretary at Sacred Heart School in Hampton.

Sister Madeline was supervisor of the clinical laboratory at Sacred Heart Hospital in Manchester, and taught at Sacred Heart Hospital School of Nursing. She did part-time office work at Castle College in Windham, New Hampshire, taught courses there and served as placement director. For many years she devoted her time to writing and had poems publish in the international library of Poetry’s America at the Millennium: The Best Poems and poets of the 20th Century, published in 1999.

Sister Madeline is survived by her brother, Arthur Erwin and his wife, Mary, of Milton, Massachusetts; several nieces and nephews, grandnieces and grandnephews; as well as her Mercy Community. She was predeceased by her brother, Richard Erwin.

Friends may call Friday, Oct. 25th at the Warde Health Center, 21 Searles Road, Windham, N.H. from 10-11 a.m. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 11 a.m. in the chapel. Burial will follow in St. Joseph Cemetery, Bedford, NH. Memorial donations may be made to the Sisters of Mercy, 21 Searles Road, PO Box 420, Windham, NH 03087-0420.

To post condolences, visit Douglas and Johnson Funeral home online.