Are you looking to connect or re-connect with one of our Sisters? If so, this is the right place!
Search by Sisters’s name, and don’t worry if you don’t know her last name — this is searchable by first name.
Feel free to click the Get In Touch link to send a message a Sister. If that Sister is deceased, but you want to make an inquiry, send an email to SSJNews@ssjerie.org. (Please note: messages sent to sisters via the website may not be private — please do not include personal or confidential information.)
Did you know that after Vatican II, many sisters returned to using their birth names rather than the religious names they were given when they entered the congregation? We’ve included current and former names to make your search easier. Just search by the name you remember.
If you would like to make a donation in honor or memory of a Sister, click here.
Can't find a Sister? Click here.
Mary Helen Forney, SSJ
SisterBiography
Home parish: St. Mary of Angels, Olean, NY
Sister Mary Helen Forney, SSJ, was born in Olean, NY, and graduated from Olean High School in 1953. From an early age, her parish played an important role in nurturing her faith and helping her recognize a call to religious life. She entered the Sisters of St. Joseph from St. Mary of the Angels Parish in Olean on September 2, 1954, and professed her final vows on August 15, 1960. At the time of her entrance, she was given the religious name Sister Mary Helen.
“It was in little St. Joseph’s Church that I first felt the call of God,” she recalls. Through catechism classes, she was deeply influenced by the loving concern of Father Nemat Chemaly and the Franciscan Sisters, who helped her develop a personal relationship with Jesus. Her parents also played an important role in nurturing her vocation. She especially remembers her father’s encouragement as she prepared to enter religious life. “If you’re going to be a nun, be a good one,” he told her.
Sr. Mary Helen was also profoundly touched by the life of St. Thérèse of Lisieux. After reading her autobiography, St. Thérèse’s love for Jesus made a lasting impression on her and even became the subject of Sr. Mary Helen’s senior theme at Olean High School. Her growing sense of being called by God eventually led her to request information from the Sisters of St. Joseph and make the decision to enter religious life.
She earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Elementary Education from Villa Maria College in Erie in 1965 and later received a Master’s degree in Graduate Theology from St. Bonaventure University in 1978. She also earned a Spiritual Direction Certificate from the Cenacle of Our Lady of Divine Providence School of Spirituality in Clearwater, FL, in 2001.
Sr. Mary Helen spent 25 years teaching in Erie Diocesan elementary schools, including St. Andrew, St. Patrick, Holy Rosary, Our Lady’s Christian, and Our Lady of Peace schools in Erie; St. Bernard in Bradford; St. Francis in Clearfield; Notre Dame in Sharon; and Holy Rosary in Johnsonburg. She later taught at Eaglemount Family Ministries in Lewisville, TX, and served in a variety of other ministries, including pastoral ministry at St. Bernard in Bradford and Director of Religious Education at Holy Rosary in Johnsonburg.
Her ministry eventually expanded into spiritual direction and pastoral care. She became a founding Sister of the House of Prayer in Erie and received certification in spiritual direction. She also served as a Sister-visitor at Marycrest, the infirmary at the Sisters’ Community Living Center, as a receptionist at Villa Maria Elementary School, and as a caregiver.
After spending several years in Olean, where she served as a substitute teacher, assisted at St. Mary of the Angels, and cared for her mother, Sr. Mary Helen returned to Erie in 2007. She continued to serve others through her ministry as an activity aide at Nightingale Nursing and Rehabilitation Center.
Looking back on her vocation, Sr. Mary Helen describes her journey with gratitude and joy. “My closeness to Jesus and my new community of sisters blossomed as God’s faithfulness unfolded beyond my wildest hopes and dreams,” she says. “Our SSJ community has given me great joy and freedom in fulfilling the call God has on my life.”
Through more than six decades as a Sister of St. Joseph, Sr. Mary Helen has continued to follow that call through education, pastoral ministry, spiritual direction, caregiving, and prayer. Her life reflects the faith instilled in her as a child and the desire she has carried throughout her vocation to remain close to Jesus and serve others with a joyful and hopeful heart.
