January 2, 1922 – July 24, 2023
Madeline entered on September 24, 1941 at age 21 and as a novice took the name Sister Marie Innocentia of the Child Jesus. She professed her first vows on March 25, 1943 and was missioned to West Orange, NJ to do parish work. All of Sr. Innocentia’s ministry after that were also parish based. After 2 years at her first mission, she was at Cambridge, MA for 8 years; Ensley, AL for 2 years; Wareham, MA for 2 years. In 1961, Sister was missioned to St. Peter-St. Paul in Brooklyn and continued to serve the parishes there for 57 years, until 2018, when she was missioned to Mother Boniface Missionary Cenacle at Wesley in Philadelphia.
Sr. Innocentia’s time in Brooklyn started at a parish called St. Peter-St. Paul-Our Lady of Pilar. She ended her time in Brooklyn at St. Peter and St. Agnes, linked parishes which were themselves the result of mergers. She was serving the same population in the same location, but the parish names and boundaries kept shifting. In 1975, Sr. Innocentia wrote to Sr. Mary Gerald, “I’m working along the lines of bringing people and children together to make them feel at home with each other. Saints Peter and Paul worked close to each other and I am sure they will do much for the parish named after them.” Sr. Inno was very sensitive to the feelings of the outsider or the excluded. She worked to draw people in, to help them feel at home, and to help them know they belonged. This sensitivity moved her to help the Puerto Rican parishioners and the Spaniard priests navigate their cultural differences with one another.
It is very difficult to sum up Sr. Innocentia’s missionary works. Her title was pastoral associate and then it was volunteer. She set up for mass every day, and if Father couldn’t make it, she would do a communion service. She brought communion to the sick. For decades, she did weekly communion services and visits at a nearby nursing home. Sister did not have an education past high school, but she learned Spanish and she learned how to organize and run programs. She did youth ministry and religious education. She was in charge of the First Communion classes for all the public school children. She developed her own brand of parish social ministry, as the parish priests inevitably funneled needy cases to her care. She had oversight of the ESL program, the CYO Job Corp, and the Summertime Poverty Program for children.
Sr. Innocentia was a bit confounding to her religious superiors. She was very independent, and did not hesitate to express her opinions. For example, she rarely attended regional meetings, a requirement of all our sisters. But this was not because she was disengaged. On the contrary, she felt a deep connection to the community and was proud to be an MSBT. She attracted many donations and bequests to MSBT, not because she solicited them, but because she was effusive to everyone about the work of the Missionary Servants, and her very life was a testimony to our mission.
We’ve heard many stories from many people whose lives were touched by Sr. Innocentia. She pulled people in, brought them back to the sacraments, made them feel loved and accepted for who they were. Without formal training, Sr. Inno was a natural spiritual guide and counselor who God used to heal the broken hearted and to bind all manner of wounds. She was the glue of the parish, and even beyond the parish.
Sr. Marie Innocentia lived the Cenacle virtues of simplicity and charity. She poured herself out for her people, and everything she had was for others. The evidence of her deep abiding gift of charity is seen in all the many people who love her so much. She left her mark on generations of people of all cultures and walks of life in the neighborhoods and parishes she served. It was only her vow of obedience that got her out of Brooklyn. She was our last pioneer, the last member who met our founder, Father Judge, when she was a child. She loved our Lord to her last breath. May she rest in peace.