News

We want to keep you in the loop of what’s happening in the SSJ Erie community. Browse through this section to explore our most recent publications, our Facebook feed, our Jubilarians' bios, and the most recent obituaries of our Sisters who have passed.

Following God’s Will Amidst a Changing Society

| February 2, 2021

by SSJ Associate Elaine Clyburn The following article was written by Elaine Clyburn, one of the first Associates welcomed by the SSJs in Erie. Her story was published in the Winter 2014-15 issue of Journeys. We are sharing it again during this year’s Black History month. In 1982, allowing God to lead me, I became…

Year of St. Joseph

| February 2, 2021

Commemorating the 150th anniversary of the declaration of St. Joseph as the Patron of the Universal Church by Pope Pius IX, Pope Francis has declared December 8, 2020 – December 8, 2021, as the “Year of St. Joseph.” In his Apostolic Letter entitled Patris Corde (with a father’s heart), Pope Francis shares some personal reflections…

journeys winter 2020-21

| February 2, 2021

Read about how technology has helped the Sisters and the SSJ community to stay connected through the pandemic.

Meet SSJ Associates Carol and Tom Hoffman

| February 2, 2021

Carol and Tom Hoffman celebrated their 59th wedding anniversary on January 27. They are members of St. Andrew’s Parish where Carol has worked for 42 years as a pastoral associate. She has been the religious education coordinator, liturgical planner, choir director, eucharistic minister, and lector. Tom spends his time with the Bay & Harbor Home…

we remember . . . Mary Kay McNelis, SSJ

| December 21, 2020

Sister Mary Kay McNelis, SSJ, (formerly Sr. Carmelita), 91, of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Northwestern Pennsylvania, died on December 20, 2020. She was born in Altoona, PA, on September 9, 1929, the daughter of the late Atty. Gerald A. and Katharine (Judermanns) McNelis. She entered the Sisters of St. Joseph from St. Andrew…

we remember … Joyce Lowrey, SSJ

| December 8, 2020

Sister Joyce Lowrey, SSJ, 81, formerly Sister Virginia, of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Northwestern Pennsylvania died on December 7, 2020. Sister Joyce was born on February 18, 1939, in Meadville, Pennsylvania, the daughter of the late John and Virginia Anderhalt Lowrey. She graduated from Penn Hills Jr./Sr. High School, Pittsburgh, PA, in 1956,…

PHOTO AT THE TOP OF THIS PAGE: (l-r) Eva Mastromatteo of Erie News Now interviews Stephanie Hall, SSJ Associate and Communications Director, and Nancy Fischer, SSJ, as part of a 5-part series during Catholic Sisters Week.