Sister Marilyn Lott

Born in St. Louis, Sister Marilyn Lott entered the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet in 1965 and was received into the novitiate in 1966. Her early career focused on education, beginning with a bachelor’s degree in special and elementary education from  Fontbonne College in 1970. She taught at Holy Guardian Angels and Most Holy Rosary grade schools before specializing further with a master’s degree in behavioral disorders from the University of Missouri-St. Louis in 1980. During this period, she served as a learning center teacher at the St. Joseph Institute for the Deaf and subsequently moved to St. Rita Grade School, where she supervised the learning center and served as a primary teacher.

In the 1980s, Sister Marilyn transitioned into the field of mental health, serving as an inpatient therapist at Mercy, a therapist at Psychiatric Coverage Ltd., and then in private practice. After earning a master’s degree in counseling in 1991, she spent nearly a decade at the Rockhaven Center for Holistic Living and the St. Joseph Provincial House as a consultant, therapist and addiction counselor. At the turn of the millennium, she moved into leadership training as the co-director of the Federation Novitiate in Connecticut and Massachusetts. 

In 2004, Sister Marilyn began a significant tenure in chaplaincy, starting with an internship at St. Louis University Medical Center. Over the next decade, she served as a full-time staff chaplain, earned a master’s degree from the Aquinas Institute of Theology, and received certification from the National Association of Catholic Chaplains. Since 2014, she has maintained a long-term commitment to St. Teresa’s Academy in Kansas City as a board member. During that same timeframe, from 2014 to 2019, she served on the province leadership team for her CSJ community.

Following a brief retirement, she returned to active ministry as the CSJ Health and Wholeness Community coordinator for a year and a half. In 2024, Sister Marilyn continues to minister as a chaplain at Nazareth Living Center while remaining active as an independent consultant, facilitator and psychotherapist. In her free time, she enjoys music, crocheting, reading and being with community.

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