spacer
spacer
Sister Margaret Sullivan, SNJM
Sister Columban Mary
April 3, 1933 – August 4, 2026
Sister Margaret Sullivan, SNJM departed this life on August 4, 2026 in Lake Oswego, Oregon.
Sister Margaret celebrated 93 years of life and 71 years of her religious profession.
A Memorial Mass will be held on Thursday, August 20, 2026, at Chapel of the Holy Names in Lake Oswego, Oregon.
Her burial will follow at Holy Names Cemetery in Marylhurst, Oregon.
Sister Margaret Sullivan, SNJM
Sister Columban Mary
April 3, 1933 – August 4, 2026
Sister Margaret Sullivan, SNJM, 93, died on August 4, 2026, at Mary’s Woods, Lake Oswego, Oregon. The Mass of Resurrection will be celebrated Thursday, August 20, at 11 a.m. in the Chapel of the Holy Names, Marylhurst, Oregon. Burial follows at the nearby Holy Names Cemetery.
The daughter of Jeremiah and Jean Tarves Sullivan, Margaret and her twin, Hardy, were born April 3, 1933, in New Westminster, British Columbia, the youngest of 14 children.
Even though Margaret was born and raised in a small town in British Columbia and had never attended Catholic school, she knew she wanted to enter religious life. When she decided to join the convent, she “went religious shopping.” She started in British Columbia and then went to Washington state, where she met the Holy Names Sisters. Upon visiting their novitiate at Marylhurst, Oregon, Margaret knew immediately that it was the right choice for her. She entered the Sisters of the Holy Names in 1953, eventually receiving the religious name Sister Columban Mary.
Never doubting her vocation, Margaret credited this to her mother’s example and her father’s heritage. “My father, a very religious man, died when I was just three years old, and my mother gets great praise for raising us all and maintaining our close family relationships.”
Margaret went on to become a beloved teacher of middle-grade students. She had just the right balance of gentle presence, high expectations and quiet humor, all infused with order, beauty and an artistic sense. She loved children’s literature and art and had a great talent for drawing creativity out of her students.
She taught in Oregon SNJM schools in Medford, Lake Oswego, Coos Bay and Cottage Grove and in Portland at The Assumption, The Madeleine and St. Andrew’s. Her longest tenure, however, was the two-plus decades at Holy Redeemer School in North Portland, where she taught for many years and continued as a tutor after leaving full-time teaching.
Volunteering in other ways, Margaret spent one day each week at Mary’s Woods in Lake Oswego, where she visited and cared for a good friend. She also volunteered one day a week at the Macdonald Center in downtown Portland visiting low-income residents in their hotels.
In 2019, Margaret joined the Mary’s Woods retirement community at Marylhurst, where she continued to share her humor, deep spirituality and kindness. For several years, she was companion to her older sister Jeannie who also lived there.
Throughout Margaret’s life, her family and her connections to her Canadian roots were deeply important to her. She was also dedicated to her students and their families, developing lifelong relationships with many. She will be remembered for her belief in the goodness of each person, her dedication to the Holy Names Sisters, her deep devotion to Mary, the Mother of God, and her faith in the loving God.
A Holy Names Sister for 71 years, Sister Margaret is survived by members of her extended family and her religious community. Remembrances may be made to Sisters of the Holy Names, PO Box 398, Marylhurst, OR 97036 or online at www.snjmusontario.org/donate.