Daughters of Wisdom, USA Province

Friends of Wisdom, in loving memory of Sr. Emelda Parent, we are saddened to announce her passing on Friday, April 3, 2020. Sister entered into eternal life while under the care of nurses and staff at Maria Regina Residence in Brentwood, NY, comforted by phone calls and prayers from her Sisters in community. Sr. Emelda will be laid to rest on Tuesday at a private burial, and a Memorial Mass will be celebrated at a later date.

Sister Emelda is fondly remembered for her and her family’s involvement in establishing the ministries of the Daughters of Wisdom in Maine. Born in Grand Isle (Lille), Maine to father, Noel Parent, and mother, Blanche Corbin Parent, Sister’s first encounter with Daughters of Wisdom was in 1939, at age 5 ½, when she was a student at Notre Dame du Mont Carmel School in Lille, Maine. In a 2004 memoir, Sr. Emelda wrote, "… I was … introduced to one of life's greatest realities and mysteries. …in two small words hanging over the classroom door frame: God Alone = Dieu Seul. …the motto of Saint Louis Marie Grignon de Montfort. …With time, I realized that Saint Montfort had managed to capture, in two small words, the ultimate meaning of life."

Sr. Emelda wrote, "I owe much to my elementary school teachers." And in her memoir, she recalls them by grade and name from “baby grade” through the eighth grade; calling one “a saint, an angel,” and in later years as a Religious, “a confidante and great friend.” She credited another with giving her the love of books, language, and poetry. And another, Sr. Claire Cyr, by her “joie-de-vivre personality,” with making possible “experiences and fun we otherwise mostly would not have had.”

After these formative years with the Daughters of Wisdom as her teachers, she graduated from Sacred Heart High School in Van Buren, Maine, where the Good Shepherd Sisters taught her. She made her first profession with the Daughters of Wisdom on August 2, 1956, later earning a B.A. in Elementary Education from Annhurst College in Woodstock, CT, and an M.A. in Education at Fairfield University in Fairfield, CT.

Sr. Emelda lived at the Daughters of Wisdom Convent in St. Agatha, Maine, where she served as a bursar for four years. After that, she taught at St. Mary Gate of Heaven in Ozone Park, NY for nearly 20 years. She retired from teaching in 1982 for medical reasons, residing for six years in community with her Sisters in Litchfield, CT, followed by Our Lady of Perpetual Help Convent in Sound Beach, NY, where she was in community for the remainder of her retirement.

In her memoir, Sr. Emelda wrote, "Sr. Claire Cyr called Pierre A. Cyr of Lille, uncle. He, along with Patrick Therriault…who served as State Senator for the town of Grand Isle, Maine from 1905 to 1910, had long requested for Religious to become part of the Mount Carmel parish family." The parish had been without Sisters since its beginning in 1869.

Sr. Emelda shared that, although Pierre Cyr and Patrick Therriault were responsible for asking for Sisters for their parish, it was in 1905 that Sister's maternal grandfather, Jean Corbin, along with Eddie Lynch, brought the first four Daughters of Wisdom to the shores of Lille, Maine. They came by canoe over the St. John's River from Canada. Sister wrote, "my gratitude and prayers go to these ‘pioneer’ families, Religious and their descendants, for the role they played in the nurturing and spreading of their faith and their role in the religious history of our Country, here in America." Sr. Emelda’s mother was also a friend of Mother Patrick, the second Provincial of the U.S. Province.

Sr. Emelda is predeceased by her parents, Noel and Blanche, and sisters, Normande, Priscilla, and Arlene. She is survived by her sisters, Noella, Lorraine, and Dorothy, and brothers, Paul, Richard, and Roger. As we lovingly remember Sr. Emelda, we celebrate her new life in Heaven, strengthened by fond memories of her life, friendship, and ministries.

Donations in Sr. Emelda’s memory can be made to https://secure.etransfer.com/EFT/BlockCode/donation1.cfm?d2org=DaughtersofWisdom&d2tool=donate

Click here to download a prayer service developed in memory of Sr. Emelda.