 Sister Mary Lillian Gagner, SNJM
Margaret Gagner
December 1, 1917–September 27, 2010 (Spokane, WA)
Margaret Lucille Gagner was the first of seven children born to George and Mary Elizabeth Fitzpatrick Gagner of Seattle, Washington. Three brothers and three sisters joined the family over the next sixteen years. Margaret graduated from Immaculate elementary and high school in Seattle before joining the Sisters of the Holy Names in 1936. Having come from a family of music and singing, it seemed natural that Margaret, now Sister Mary Lillian, began a career of teaching music.
Prepared with a BMusic degree from Marylhurst College, Sister Lillian taught piano, cello, violin, harp, classroom singing and children’s choirs for 24 years. In 1962, Sister Lillian asked to be a classroom teacher, and taught third, fourth or fifth grades until 1981. Sister was always well-prepared for her teaching, with high expectations of herself and of her students. She felt responsible for her use of their time as well as of her own.
In 1981, Sister Lillian retired from teaching and came to Convent of the Holy Names in Spokane to be of service to her religious Sisters in the retirement and care center. Always industrious, Sister Lillian found plenty to keep her busy! She worked in the kitchen scullery, kept the Dining Room spotless and decorated for every season and feast day, set up the tables for special events, made aprons and pot holders for the kitchen crew, did all the kitchen laundry, gardened and harvested food for the Sisters, created memorial displays, prepared and hostessed receptions following Vigil services for Sisters who had died, designed bulletin boards, and the list goes on. In her spare time(!) Sister Mary Lillian exercised her gifts for arts and crafts to create special favors for the Sisters, for table decorations or for sale at the annual bazaar, or as gifts for members of her family. For personal reflection time, Lillian could be seen in the outdoors, appreciating the beauty, Rosary in hand, and Morris, her cat close by.
Sister Lillian seemed to do all those things quietly, and each presentation was a surprise. Her Sisters knew the time and love that went into the production of each gift, as did her family. She recruited her family to work with her and support her many projects, and they all interacted with quiet devotion and great joy. Sister Lillian’s life was consistently focused on creating “home” everywhere she lived, perhaps in anticipation of the eternal home for which she longed.
Sister Mary Lillian’s brother Don and her sisters Maribeth Pederson and Sally McGlynn, all of Seattle survive her, as well as her nieces and nephews, and the Sisters of the Holy Names, with whom she has spent 74 years. Her brothers George Robert and Harold and her sister Cecilia have died.
Sister Lillian died September 27, 2010, in Spokane. Funeral Mass is scheduled for Saturday, October 2, 2010, at 3:00 p.m., Convent of the Holy Names, 2911 West Fort Wright Drive, Spokane. Memorial gifts may be made to the Sisters of the Holy Names Retirement Fund, 2911 West Fort Wright Drive, Spokane, WA 99224 |