Cecilia Gavaghan

Deceased Sisters

Cecilia Gavaghan - Ireland
18/12/1922 - 22/05/2019

Sr Cecilia Gavaghan was born on December 18th 1922 to John and Anne Gavaghan in the village of Clooneen, Aclare, Co. Sligo. She was christened Annie Alice, the sixth of eight children, all of whom predeceased her.

Her primary education was received in Kilmacteigue national school. From there she went to the Marist Convent Tubbercurry, as a boarder for her second level education.

She joined the Novitiate in Carrick-on-Shannon in 1943 where was professed in 1945 and made her final profession in 1949.

From 1945 - 1049 Sr Cecilia studied in Sion Hill College, Dublin, for a teaching Diploma in Home Economics.

She then started her teaching career in Charlestown, moved for one year to Fulham and from there to teach in Carrick-on-Shannon.

After a break from teaching, she moved to Tubbercurry as Superior for three years.

She returned to Carrick-on-Shannon as a member of the teaching staff. Her final teaching appointment saw her back in Charlestown as school Principal for a period of ten years, at the end of which she retired in 1985.

The next ten years Sr Cecilia spent in Belfast, Northern Ireland, working as a Parish Sister. This was a daunting task as the area was very troubled at the time, but it did not daunt her daring spirit.

After that assignment, she came back to Tubbercurry for two years where she helped in the Secondary School, giving special care to the weaker students who were not particularly interested in being educated.

In 1997, she returned to her beloved Charlestown where she remained until her final illness in October 2018.

Following a hip operation and some time spent in St. Anne’s Private Nursing Home, she went back to the God who created her on May 22nd 2019.

Sr Cecilia was a woman of great faith, her devotion and love of the Mass were boundless, and her prayer life took precedence over all other activities. She had a list of people - both living and dead - for whom she prayed on a daily basis.

Her family members were very special to her - she kept in touch with all of them on a regular basis, as did they with her. Showing interest in what they were doing was very important to her. One of the last things she did was to write a letter to her grandniece in Australia.

She kept contact with her many past-pupils - knew what they were doing after leaving school, whom they married, what family they had and where they lived.

In her final years of retirement, Sr Cecilia kept herself busy doing Sudoku Puzzles, but mainly by knitting and counting the threads for Cross-Stitch embroidery - her Home Economics training was certainly used to the full.

Her funeral Mass was celebrated in Charlestown parish Church followed by her burial in the Marist plot at the rear of the Church.

May she rest in peace.

Deceased Sisters

38 visits