Sister Mary Holy Cross Byrne, nun for 75 years, dies

Sister Mary Holy Cross Byrne, a nun in the Sisters of the Good Shepherd order for 75 years whose mission was to help care for young children from broken homes, died Thursday of a heart condition. She was 97.

Byrne, whose given name was Rosalie, was a religious person noted by her friends and family for her loving and caring nature. "People would meet her and they would feel better about themselves," said her nephew Edward Thompson, 69, of Farmingdale.

As a young woman, Byrne worked in downtown Manhattan and would go to Battery Park during her lunch break to pray. There she noticed a chapel built to provide refuge for young and poor Irish immigrant women, Thompson said.

Wanting to help them, Byrne took a priest's suggestion and in 1934 joined the Sisters of the Good Shepherd, Thompson said.

Byrne served in several convents, including those located in Dix Hills, Peekskill, and Morristown, N.J.

"She cared so much for the kids and made them feel like somebody," said Sister Irene Wheeler, 65, of Pittsburgh, who was one of Byrne's students at Our Lady of Grace convent in Morristown. "She always put herself last."

Born Feb. 13, 1913, in Brooklyn, Byrne was the youngest of 10 children - five boys and five girls. She was known for having a fun-loving personality and was always excited to see family and friends, Thompson said.

"She would always give you an incredible bear hug that would take the wind out of you," Thompson said.

In her spare time, Byrne had a passion for knitting and crocheting. Thompson said she was always willing to make things for others, adding that he still has an afghan that Byrne knitted for him long ago.

Margaret Goeren, 77, Byrne's niece, lives in Hampton Bays, which Byrne frequented for vacations. Goeren said Byrne loved to swim and continued to swim as recently as 10 years ago, when she was 87.

"She loved the freedom of being in the water," Goeren said.

Wheeler said that Byrne had a tremendous impact on the children she cared for and her work influenced Wheeler to also become a nun.

"I wanted to help young kids like she did," Wheeler said.

Sister Karen Keegan of Maspeth, a fellow member of the Sisters of the Good Shepherd, said Byrne carried her caring nature to the Our Lady of Consolation Nursing & Rehabilitative Care Center in West Islip, where she lived for the last six years of her life. Keegan said Byrne would often take care of other nursing home patients even though she was a patient herself.

Byrne is survived by numerous nieces and nephews.

A wake is scheduled from 2 to 4:30 p.m. and from 7 to 9:30 p.m. Monday at the Fredrick J. Chapey & Sons funeral home in West Islip. The funeral Mass will be offered Tuesday at 10 a.m. at Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal in Wyandanch.