Sister Margaret Ryall, (Peg) beloved Sister of Saint Joseph for seventy years, died at Saint Joseph Villa on June 23, 2010. S.Margaret was in the Ministry of Prayer and Presence at the Villa, having retired there four years ago. Her funeral liturgy was celebrated at the Villa on Tuesday, June 29, by Father Doherty who came down from New Jersey to honor Sister.
Children of immigrant parents from Ireland, Margaret and her sister were reared in Newark, New Jersey. Margaret attended Blessed Sacrament grade school and the first two years of high school at Our Lady of Good Counsel. She entered the Sisters of Saint Joseph in 1939 at the age of 19. Strongly influenced by her great interest in literature, Margaret felt that her early reading of Francis Thompson’s Hound of Heaven literally “haunted her.”
An avid reader of classic writers and lover of poetry, Margaret continued to be enriched as she studied and advanced in religious life. She received the religious name of Sister Aloysius Gonzaga, a name to be remembered by the many students she taught throughout her long career.
Peg was a consummate learner, receiving degrees from Chestnut Hill College and Fordham University. During her years of active ministry, she studied Philosophy and Spanish at Villanova University; Psychology at Temple University; Literature at the Institut Catholique in Paris, France. Peg was truly a Renaissance Woman, a conversationalist and teacher. Her excellent and varied academic background served her well in her years of ministry.
In 1980, Peg’s ministry took an unexpected turn. Refugees from Cuba, the Ariel Boat People, arrived at Indiantown Gap near her mission in Harrisburg. Not knowing enough Spanish, Peg, nevertheless, so moved by the plight of these peoples, sought ways to give aid to the refugees. Local authorities did not grant permission to give help. Her pleading, however, paid off. She and Sister Imelda Hasson were granted permission to begin teaching English to the men who were sequestered in an area several miles from their families. This started Peg on a new venture—teaching English as a Second Language. For the next several years, Peg fulfilled her passionate desire to assist immigrants to learn basic communication skills in order to help them to live peacefully with their American neighbors and to sustain themselves and their families. She taught ESL to Korean, Haitian, African, Asian, French, German, Polish, and Spanish speaking adults.
Always gracious and accommodating, Peg had a ready, full and beautiful smile right up to the day before she died. In addition, her sense of humor was enduring. Sister Peg’s legacy of love and service lives on! |
