Sr. Aileen J. Caroline Conway

Caroline Conway, SHCJ
(Mother Mary Caroline)

September 25, 1928 – December 29, 2023
Teacher, Administrator, Spiritual Director, Thai Chi Instructor

Rosemont, Pennsylvania – Caroline Conway, a Sister of the Holy Child Jesus for 69 years, died peacefully on Wednesday, December 29. She was 95.

Born and raised in Portland, Oregon, Sister Caroline was educated at Holy Child Academy. Her musical gifts were nurtured at Marylhurst University, where she received a Bachelor of Arts in music in 1950. When Sister Caroline entered the Society of the Holy Child Jesus in 1951, she appreciated being part of a particularly musical religious community. She made her first and final vows in 1954 and 1959, respectively.

Sister Caroline began her teaching ministry at Holy Child School at Rosemont in Rosemont, Pennsylvania (1953-55). Sister Caroline was then assigned to her alma mater, Holy Child Academy in Portland (1955-65), where she taught for ten years and served as principal for five of those years. After her time in Portland, Sister Caroline spent the next three years as head of school of Mayfield Senior School in Pasadena, California (1965-68). She returned to the East Coast, where she taught at Rosemont College (1968-71).

In 1971, Sister Caroline earned a master’s degree in religious studies from Temple University and began an eight-year ministry at Connelly School of the Holy Child in Potomac, Maryland (1972-80).

In 1980, Sister Caroline was called to Rome, Italy, to work as Secretary General of the Society of the Holy Child Jesus, a position she held for seven years. Sister Caroline’s next ministry took her to Grand Junction, Colorado, where she founded Grand Valley Catholic Outreach and served as the organization’s director for ten years. She offered spiritual direction and Thai Chi classes and launched prayer and earth-caring groups. She also kept music alive in her life by playing the piano.

In 2015, Sister Caroline retired from active ministry in Colorado and returned to the East Coast to live with Holy Child Sisters in the Rosemont area.

Sister Caroline had a great zest for life which she expressed through her love of people, talent and training for music and dance, intellectual curiosity, and dedication to re-tooling her skills for diverse ministry paths.

She joins her parents, Morrison and Mary Caroline (Manning), and her siblings, Carita, Ruth, Morrison, Connie, and Carol. She is survived by many nieces, nephews, grandnieces, and grandnephews.

Friends and family are invited to a Prayer of Remembrance on Sunday, January 7, 2024, at 4:00 p.m., and a Mass of Christian Burial on Monday, January 8, at 11:00 a.m., at Holy Child Chapel, 1341 Montgomery Avenue, Rosemont, Pennsylvania 19010. Preceding Mass, friends and family are welcome to attend the viewing at 10:00 a.m.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be sent to the Society of the Holy Child Jesus – American Province, 1341 Montgomery Avenue, Rosemont, PA 19010, or made online at www.shcj.org/american/donate.