Religious Milestones: Mercy Sister Mary McAuley Ronan, 75 years

In reflecting on her decades as a religious, Mercy Sister Mary McAuley Ronan said, “God’s blessings, kindness and goodness over the years comes to mind.” She added that when she looks back, she “can’t believe where the years have gone.”

Born and raised in Trenton, Sister McAuley was the middle child of James and Katherine Ronan. She had two older brothers, John and James, and younger twins, Katherine and Hugh. She said she began thinking about a vocation to the religious life when she was in the fifth grade at St. Anthony Elementary School, where she was taught by the Franciscan Sisters. One day, a priest visited her class and invited anyone thinking about a vocation in consecrated life to stay and talk with him. Sister McAuley was one of the students who stayed. Afterwards, she began to think about becoming a religious, but it wasn’t until high school that she seriously discerned her vocation.

In high school, Sister McAuley was taught by the Mercy Sisters. Wanting to be a teacher, she said she kept fighting the call to become a religious and even applied to Trenton State College (now The College of New Jersey, Ewing) and was accepted. Through all of her interactions with the Sisters of Mercy, however, her call became strong.

“I just knew the call was there for me to enter the Sisters of Mercy,” she said. So, after high school, Sister McAuley entered the community and professed her final vows in 1954. She chose to take the name of Venerable Catherine McAuley, who founded the Mercy Sisters in the 19th century.

Once professed, Sister McAuley studied at Georgian Court College (now University), Lakewood, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in mathematics and minored in philosophy.

She continued her education at Villanova University, Pa., where she earned a master’s degree in mathematics, the subject she noted that was always her favorite.

Her teaching assignments began in the Diocese of Trenton with first-graders at Our Lady of Victories School, Sayreville, then first- and fifth-graders at St. Paul School, Princeton.

Beginning in 1958, Sister McAuley began her ministry as a math teacher, which continued for almost four decades. For 11 years, she served as a math teacher at Camden Catholic High School, then she taught math for two years at the now-closed St. Pius X High School, Piscataway.

She was assigned next as math teacher and faculty chairperson at now-closed St. Mary’s High School, Perth Amboy.

In 1975, Sister McAuley became the math teacher and math department chairperson at Red Bank Catholic. Five years later, she was named the school’s principal and served there until 1995.

When asked to reflect on a highlight of her teaching career, Sister McAuley said there was a student who challenged her marking a math problem he had solved as incorrect. When he explained to her the next day how he arrived at the answer, she told him his answer was correct. “I never looked at the problem from your perspective,” she told him. Afterwards Sister McAuley said she always told her students if they thought their answer to a math problem was correct, but marked wrong to check it out.

After leaving Red Bank Catholic, Sister McAuley returned to the Mercy Sisters Motherhouse, where she served as assistant directress in charge of special projects.

She noted that she helped oversee construction and renovation projects, including the rebuilding of a 90-year-old foundation to support the technology and equipment of a new science center.

“In almost every place I was sent to there was construction going on,” she added.

Today, Sister McAuley lives in Gabriel Hall for the retired Mercy Sisters, on the campus of Mount St. Mary Academy, Watchung.

She spends her time praying for everyone.