Sister Eleanor Kratz, SNJM
(Sister Christa Mary)
April 9, 1936 – September 28, 2019
Sister Eleanor Kratz, SNJM departed this life on September 28, 2019 at Marie Rose Center, Mary’s Woods at Marylhurst in Lake Oswego, Oregon.
Sister Eleanor celebrated 83 years of life and 63 years of her religious profession.
Mass of Resurrection was celebrated on Thursday, October 17, 2019, at 11:00 a.m. at Chapel of the Holy Names, Lake Oswego, Oregon.
Burial took place following the funeral at Holy Names Cemetery, Marylhurst, Oregon.
Sister Eleanor “Ellie” Kratz, SNJM
Sister Christa Mary
April 9, 1936 – September 28, 2019
A Holy Names Sister for 63 years, Sister Eleanor “Ellie” Kratz (Christa Mary), age 83, died September 28, 2019, in the Marie-Rose Center at Mary’s Woods at Marylhurst, Lake Oswego, Oregon. The only child of George and Katherina Wengert Kratz, Ellie was born in New York and lived in New Jersey. They had first come to Portland when Ellie was two. She said of that first trip that her favorite place to sit was at her mom’s feet on the passenger side and when the car stopped she would say “more car, Daddy, more car” which she never tired of saying. At one point when they stopped for gas, she took the car key and threw it in the back of the car and they had to take out all their belongings to find it.
After less than a year in Portland they went back to the East Coast because of the rumors of impending war with Germany. Her parents thought it would be safer to be with others of German heritage at that time as her mother was not yet a citizen.
In 1947 they returned to Portland when Ellie was age 11. She met the Holy Names Sisters for the first time as a sixth grader at Holy Redeemer School. Upon graduating from St. Mary’s Academy, Ellie entered the novitiate at Marylhurst.
After profession of vows, Ellie, now Sister Christa Mary, taught primary grades in SNJM schools in Oregon and Washington for 27 years, including nine years at Assumption in North Portland and for four years as principal in Newberg and The Dalles.
A transition period followed which included the trying illness of her mother. Ellie wrote, “I felt I was being prepared for something, but that something was not yet clear.” Over time she discerned a call to ministry as a hospital chaplain. After completing CPE (Clinical Pastoral Education) training, she went to Lewiston, Idaho, as a chaplain at St. Joseph’s Medical Center. After nine years there, she returned to Oregon to be SNJM Family Representative for the Sisters in the Marie-Rose Center at Mary’s Woods.
When she retired Ellie wrote, “The emphasis in my life now is on BEING rather than DOING and on living only the present moment.” Sister Ellie was a woman with a deep sense of prayer and a generous heart who graced the lives of many with her compassion and love.
Sister Ellie is survived by her cousins in the United States and Germany and the members of her religious community. Remembrances may be made to Sisters of the Holy Names, P.O. Box 398, Marylhurst, OR 97036 or online at www.snjmusontario.org/donate.