Sister Mary Ann Mundy, SSMN 1941-2021

Sister Mary Ann Mundy, educator, minister and environmentalist, died on Dec. 1, 2021.

She was the daughter of Francis Mundy from Oswego, and Anne Gaffney from Lackawanna, born July 21, 1941.

A graduate of Mount St. Mary Academy, Sister Mary Ann entered the Sisters of St. Mary of Namur in 1960, making her perpetual vows on Aug. 22, 1969. She took the name Sister Rose Ann. She graduated from D’Youville College in 1964 with a bachelor’s degree in biology. She earned a master’s in religious studies from LaSalle University in Philadelphia.

Sister Mary Ann began her teaching career at Cardinal O’Hara High School in Tonawanda and continued her teaching at St. Jude High School in Sumter, South Carolina, where she was the assistant principal.
However, early on Sister was sent into parish ministry, which became a lifelong mission. This she enjoyed at St. Ann Church in Florence, South Carolina, St. Mary Church in Binghamton, St. Mary of the Rosary Church in Strykersville, St. Anthony Church in Lockport, and St. John the Evangelist and Blessed Sacrament Churches in Buffalo.

At times, Sister Mary Ann also carried community responsibilities along with her mission, serving as local superior in several houses. She also worked at the director of Junior Professed, guiding younger sisters through their early years.

What really moved Sister Mary Ann was the need to take care of the earth. She was the inspiration for forming a provincial committee on ecology long before the problems of the earth had reached crisis level. She brought a major speaker to the province and kept others aware of the need to maintain the health of water, air and land. This drive not only blossomed in her work to make others aware, it also called her to work for smaller local goals.

She is survived by her only sibling, her brother Francis Noel Mundy of Cowlesville.

A wake service is being held at St. Mary Center, 245 Lafayette Ave., Buffalo on Friday, Dec. 3 from 2-7 p.m. Mass of the Resurrection will be on Saturday, Dec. 4 at 10 a.m.