Our name, Sisters of St. Joseph, expresses our resolve to serve others with loving concern as Joseph served Jesus and Mary. ~ SSJ Constitutions
Sister Mary Alice Reed, SSJ, age 90, of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Northwestern Pennsylvania, died on March 2, 2018. She was in the 74th year of her religious life. She was born in Erie, PA, on January 5, 1928 the daughter of William C. and Margaret (McDonald) Reed whom she credited for influencing her vocation choice. She attended St. Andrew Elementary School, Erie and graduated from Villa Maria Academy, Erie, in 1945. She entered the Sisters of St. Joseph in 1944 from her home parish, St. Andrew, Erie, and professed her final vows in 1950.
Sister Mary Alice received a B.S. in Elementary Education from Villa Maria College in 1957 and later attended St. John’s University in Cleveland in 1957 and 1958. She earned an M.Ed. in Guidance and Counseling from Gannon University, Erie, in 1972.
“I was blessed with the example of my parents and my teachers, the Sisters of St. Joseph,” she said on the occasion of her 60th Jubilee. “(They) taught me in grade school and high school and had a great impact on my choice of a vocation. Their example of spirituality and service to all influenced me to answer God’s call. Their living out of the charism of the Sisters of St. Joseph – unity of neighbor with neighbor and neighbor with God – challenged me to follow their way of life.”
Sister Mary Alice taught for more than 50 years at numerous Erie Diocesan schools including St. Andrew, Holy Rosary, Our Lady’s Christian, Cathedral Center, St. Patrick, Blessed Sacrament, St. John the Baptist, Sacred Heart and Villa Maria Elementary, all in Erie; and St. Bernard, Bradford; and St. Francis, Clearfield. She also served as principal at Our Lady of Peace, Erie; Maryvale Kindergarten, Erie; and Blessed Sacrament, Erie.
Sister Mary Alice also ministered doing hospital visitations and substitute teaching. In her retirement, she tutored children and participated in prayer ministries while living at the Sisters of St. Joseph Community Living Center.
In 2006, a statue of St. Joseph the Worker was placed on the grounds of the SSJ Community Living Center as a gift from Sr. Mary Alice’s family in memory of her parents and deceased family members. When it was dedicated, several items were placed in its base including the Sisters of St. Joseph Constitutions; a prayer to St. Joseph; and a St. Joseph Medal from the 100th anniversary of the Sisters of St. Joseph in the Diocese of Erie.
In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by a sister Arlene Seib, and brothers, William P. and Thomas Reed. She is survived by her sister-in-law, Bonnie, of Deep River, CT, several nieces, a nephew and cousins.
