Sister Eleanor Agnes Sheehan

Compassionate, gentle, welcoming

Eleanor Agnes was born on October 29, 1928, to James and Mary Agnes (Marron) Sheehan of Denver, Colorado. Her brother, Jim, was a year old. Eleanor attended public school until fifth grade when she switched to St. Vincent de Paul and was taught by the Loretto Sisters. She received a scholarship to St. Francis de Sales High, where she met S. Jean Fontbonne Sandweg, who became a great influence in her life.

After a year at Loretto Heights College, she entered the Sisters of St. Joseph on September 15, 1947, and was received as Sister Agnes Patrice on March 19, 1948. Sister Eleanor began teaching in St. Louis elementary schools: Saints Mary & Joseph (1950); Nativity of Our Lord (1955) and Most Holy Rosary (1956). In 1956, Fontbonne College awarded her a bachelor’s degree in American history. In 1957, she studied at Regina Mundi College in Rome, Italy, followed by an assignment to the Fontbonne College faculty (1958). At The Catholic University of America in 1964, S. Eleanor earned her master’s in dogmatic/systematic theology and a doctorate in dogmatic theology. She then returned to Fontbonne in 1967.

S. Eleanor became campus minister at Michigan State University in East Lansing, Michigan (1971), followed by time as a provincial councilor and regional superior in St. Louis (1977). Then, she was an adult education consultant at the diocesan Religious Education Office in Kaneohe, Oahu, Hawaii (1980). After a year as student at Jesuit Renewal Center in Milford, Ohio (1982), she spent 1983 as a resident at Lebh Shomea House of Prayer in Sarita, Texas, followed by teaching adult religious education at St. Mary Parish in Littleton, Colorado. In 1985, she was ushered into a ministry she truly loved—spiritual companioning at Sacred Heart Retreat House in Sedalia, Colorado. Sister continued retreat work until she retired in Littleton in 2007, moving to Nazareth Living Center in 2012.

So many sisters and associates sent memories of S. Eleanor that they would fill pages. Here are a few snippets from some of the comments:

S. Marion Weinzapfel remembers Eleanor "teaching us [juniorate sisters] theology in the wake of Vatican II—and being awed by her spirituality.”

A. Gerry Rauch knew S. Eleanor only while she was ...
Severely limited in her ability to communicate ... but her beautiful blue eyes were so expressive that they overcame her verbal limitation ... A generous, loving soul has found her rest in the Divine.

A. Barb Lotze remembers,
She taught me how to be still and listen to our awesome creator ... She was truly the presence of Christ in our midst ... Her gentle, kind and compassionate spirit was like no other.

S. Mary Joyce Bringer says,
[Eleanor] was a very welcoming person. She had the gift to remember you ... listened attentively ... always exuded joy. I loved seeing her, because you always felt she was glad you were there.

A. Barbara Field Meyer remembers,
Her Irish twinkle and humor (not to mention her beautiful blue eyes) found me [at conferences] always sitting on the front row not to miss any of the simple, profound words she spoke, assuring me of God's love, forgiveness and mercy.

S. Shawn Madigan says,
Her love of the congregation was always deeply rooted. She was not afraid to state her future vision of what could be, in spite of opposition. In an unassuming way, and without center stage affirmation, Eleanor moved many hearts and hopes.

S. Ruth Stuckel shares,
Eleanor Sheehan was beautiful inside and out. Her lovely smile, her thoughtful manner, and her love of people and of life made being in her company delightful ... I looked up to her as the model of what it meant to be as a Sister of St. Joseph. She was a beautiful, caring, genuine person, without any guile!

Sister Helen Oates