Sister Mary Charles

Sr. Mary Charles, known in the world as Jean Marie Culbertson, a member of The Society of the All Saints Sisters of the Poor for 45 years, died from cardiac arrest on the Feast of St. Maria Faustina Kowalska of the Blessed Sacrament, October 5, 2022.  She was 83 years of age.

A native of Southern California, Sr. Mary Charles was born on October 26, 1939 to Ethel and Alton Douglass Culbertson.  She is predeceased by her only sibling, Donald Culbertson.

Sr. Mary Charles taught elementary school for several years before entering Religious Life as a member of the Episcopal Church.  She began her journey with the sisters of the Order of St. Helena in Vails Gate, New York and later transferred to The All Saints Sisters of the Poor where she found her calling.

As an All Saints Sister, she served in many capacities from managing the kitchen, overseeing the Shipping Department of the Card Shop business, to working at St. Gabriel’s Retreat House where she conducted many well attended retreats, to participating in and leading scores of teaching missions.  She was particularly fond of the St. Michael’s Conference and loved working with the young people.  For many years she served on the Boards of Regeneration and of the Joseph Richey Hospice, as well as, serving as Treasurer of our own Board and as a Council member.

For those who knew and worked with Sister, she may well best be remembered for her unfailing witness to Catholic truth, belief, and practice. As she grew older, her desire to convert to Roman Catholicism grew stronger.  How incredibly happy she was when the Holy Spirit led the All Saints Sisters to do what had once been imagined as unimaginable - to convert to Roman Catholicism. She was home and so were we.

Our Community will be poorer without Sr. Mary Charles whose sense of humor kept us smiling and whose love for the Lord kept us forever singing His praises, moving forward and embracing the future.

May she rest in peace and rise in glory.