A Mass of Christian Burial for Sister Mary Patrick Collins, D.C., was celebrated May 15, 2013, at Seton Chapel in Evansville, Ind. Burial followed at St. Joseph Cemetery in Evansville.
Sister Mary Patrick died May 11, 2013, at 91 years of age at the Daughters of Charity senior care residence, Seton Residence, in Evansville. In January of 2013, she celebrated 73 years vocation as a Daughter of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul.
Born in Chicago, Ill., on Nov. 6, 1921, Sister Mary Patrick was the second of three children born to Patrick and Edna (Frey) Collins. Sister was named Mary Eileen Collins at birth.
Sister Mary Patrick graduated from St. Patrick High School in Chicago and was a member of St. Edward Parish as she grew up. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in education from Fontbonne College (now University) in St. Louis, Mo., in 1949.
After her initial formation as a Daughter of Charity, Sister Mary Patrick was missioned to Mobile, Ala., where she served as a house mother and teacher at St. Mary’s Home for Girls. In 1945, she was missioned as a teacher to Keokuk, Iowa, and in 1948, Sister Mary Patrick was missioned to teach at Mount St. Joseph in San Francisco, Calif. Then, in 1954, Sister Mary Patrick began her 50-plus year missionary service in Japan. After studying in Kyoto, she served as a child care administrator in Osaka for 16 years (1963 to 1979); then, for 34 years, she ministered with the sick and elderly. During her time in Japan, Sister Mary Patrick also served as a provincial council member at Maiko Provincial House as well as Sister Servant of a Korean mission in Japan. Sister Mary Patrick returned to the U.S. in 2009. In November of that year, she was missioned to Seton Residence in Evansville, Ind., where she served in the Ministry of Prayer until the time of her death.
Sister Mary Patrick was preceded in death by her parents and her brother, Jim, who was a priest in the Diocese of Springfield, Ill. She is survived by her sister, Mary Anne Roche of Houston, Tex.; nieces; nephews; friends; and her Sisters in Community.