Obituary of Sister Mary Marzen

Sister of Christian Charity Mary Marzen passed away on Sunday, May 12, 2024, at Mallinckrodt Convent, Mendham, NJ. Mary Agatha Marzen was born in East Mauch Chunk, PA, on June 3, 1928, one of thirteen children of John and Amelia (Engler) Marzen. Mary entered the Sisters of Christian Charity in Mendham on February 18, 1947, and at her Investing on August 21 that same year she received  the name Sister Xaveriana after her recently-deceased aunt, Sister Xaveriana Engler, SCC. (Years later, she would return to her baptismal name and was known as Sister Mary.) She professed her First Vows on August 21, 1949, and her Final Vows on August 20, 1955. Sister Mary was a graduate of East Mauch Chunk High School and received her Bachelor of Arts degree from Rivier College, Nashua, New Hampshire.

Most of Sister Mary’s seventy-seven years as a Sister of Christian Charity were lovingly dedicated to the ministry of education, first in Elizabeth, NJ, then in Chatham, NJ.  In 1955, she embarked on a ministry that would span 34 years at West Philadelphia Catholic Girls’ High School, first teaching commercial courses, then assisting in the Studies Office. Her work there was done efficiently and effectively, while she maintained a pleasant demeanor with the girls. When the Sisters of Christian Charity withdrew from West Catholic in 1989, Sister Mary became the secretary at Nativity School in Philadelphia. 

In 1992, Sister Mary was transferred to Holy Family Convent, Danville, PA, where she served the aged and infirm Sisters of Christian Charity for the next 26 years, first as Administrator, then as Treasurer. In May 2018, Sister retired to the Motherhouse in Mendham, where she participated in a ministry of prayer and presence until her death, just three weeks shy of her 96^th birthday.

Sister Mary is survived by the Sisters of Christian Charity, her brother, Edward Marzen, and a large extended family of many beloved nieces and nephews, their spouses and families.

She was predeceased by her parents, John and Amelia; her siblings, Anna, John, Margaret, Leonard, William, Robert, George, Rev. Msgr. Joseph, Francis, James J., and James F.; her aunts, Sister Xaveriana Engler, SCC, Sister Ursuline Engler, SCC, and Sister Leonard Marzen, SCC; her cousin, Sister Elma Chappell, SCC; and her uncle, Rev. John Engler.

Visitation will be held in the Chapel of Mary Immaculate at the Motherhouse in Mendham on Wednesday, May 15 from 1:30 – 4:30 p.m. with Vespers being prayed at 4:30 p.m. The Liturgy of Christian Burial will be celebrated at the Chapel of Mary Immaculate on Thursday, May 16 at 10:30 a.m., and will be livestreamed at sccus.org. Interment will follow at Holy Cross Cemetery on the grounds of the Motherhouse. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in memory of Sister Mary Marzen to the Sisters of Christian Charity, 350 Bernardsville Road, Mendham, NJ, 07945, or at sccus.org/donate.