Sister Marie Alice Moran

December 14, 1923-September 12, 2022

“We have come to know and believe in the love that God has for us.”

Gentle and kind, S. Marie Alice Moran grew up in Cincinnati, Ohio, attending St. Lawrence grade school and graduating from Cincinnati Commercial High School. She entered the Sisters of Charity in September 1943 after working in a business setting for several years. She felt a closeness to the Sisters who had taught her at St. Lawrence and she entered the Community with a desire to give her life to God as they did. It was the daily Eucharist, the fun, happy times they shared, and her strong Catholic upbringing in her home that supported her decision. She was a Sister of Charity for 79 years.

S. Marie Alice’s ministries spanned more than 50 years in education, 44 in the elementary classroom and seven more in the Reading Lab at the College of Mount St. Joseph. She began her years of service at Sacred Heart, Denver, Colorado, teaching primary age children in 1945. She went on to teach at the primary, intermediate and junior high levels at schools across the country for the next four decades, including Holy Name, Cleveland, Ohio (1952-’56) and Pauline Memorial, Colorado Springs, Colorado (1972-’80, 1985-’88).

After many adventures across the states and in Catholic school classrooms in Michigan, Ohio, Maryland, Florida and Colorado, S. Marie Alice decided to slow down and accepted a position at the Reading Lab at the College of Mount St. Joseph where she remained for seven years, a position she enjoyed, working with her Sisters and assisting students one-on-one.

For her retirement years, S. Marie Alice served in the sewing room in Mother Margaret Hall. Liturgy continued to be the center of her spiritual life. A trip to Ireland was a highlight of her retirement years. She enjoyed picnics, concerts and family gatherings. She was a faithful fan of the Cincinnati Reds and looked forward to her favorite watercolor class. Occasionally she would relax by playing her familiar Irish songs on the piano.

S. Mary Dugan shared, “S. Marie Alice was a kind, thoughtful person. I worked with her before COVID restrictions changed things. She knew that I was doing volunteer work with ESOL, English Speakers of Other Languages, and she gave me calendars for the students which she managed to acquire. She was also concerned about the protection of our planet’s biodiversity; she cared about creation and God’s people.”

Added S. Franette Hyc, “In all my contacts with S. Marie Alice I found her to be a very gentle woman. She loved to listen to her music on tape. When she resided in Mother Margaret Hall she spent most of her time in her room looking out her window, enjoying nature along the Motherhouse drive while either praying or listening to music.”