SrEmiliawasan excellentteacher
On a cold bright January day we bade a fond farewell to a beautiful lady who was small in stature but with a massive heart Sr Emilia Hurley OSC, (Kathleen). Sr Emilia passed away peacefully in the tender loving care of staff and community of St Clare’s Convent Ashgrove Avenue, Newry Co Down on Saturday 18th January.
Sr Emilia or Kathleen as she was fondly known by her nieces and nephews and all those in Drogheda was a member of the Hurley family of Georges Street, she was born on 12th December 1930 in 22 Georges Street, Drogheda to parents Thomas and Emily Hurley, she was the youngest of 4 children.
She was predeceased by her mother in May 1939, father in February 1979, her sister Mary in January 2002, her brother Charlie in August 2012 and her sister Bridie in May 2013.
She was educated in the Presentation Sisters in Fair Street and upon leaving school she entered the order of St Clare’s in High Street Newry on 11th August 1949, she made her final profession on the 20th April 1954.
Sr Emilia taught English and Latin to the students in High Street for a number of years before moving over in 1977 to St
Clare’s convent and high school in Portcawl Wales. She spent many years in Portcawl and loved to have visitors over from her home town. Each Summer she would return home to Drogheda for holidays and would travel around Ireland with her sisters. She also travelled to Lourdes on a number of occasions and one of her most memorable holidays was when in 2005 she travelled to Rome with her beloved brother Charlie and his wife Nell, her sister Bridie and all of her 11 nieces and nephews and some grand nieces and nephews .
Following her retirement from teaching Sr Emilia returned to St Clare’s Convent in Newry and met up again with some of her pals from her earlier days in Newry. She enjoyed gardening and walking and spent many a day tending to the lovely flower beds at the back of the convent garden.
Sr Emilia’s requiem mass was held on Monday 20th January in the church in St Clare’s Convent and was concelebrated by Rev Fr Krzysztof Kosciolek SChr, and Rev Fr Cesare Decio OP. Music was provided by the St Clare’s Sisters, and the pupils of Sacred Heart Grammar School formed a guard of honour as the funeral cortege made its way to Sr Emilia’s final resting place in the convents High Street cemetery.
A months mind Mass for Sr Emilia will be held in St Peter’s Church on Sunday next 16th February at 11 am.