Sister Marie Rosso
Current Ministry Location – Center, NY
Marie Rosso was born November 16, 1930 to Anna (Brennan) Rosso and Daniel A. Rosso in Philadelphia, PA. She had 2 brothers: Thomas and Daniel and 2 sisters: Anne and Sr. Dolores, MM. She graduated from Little Flower Catholic High School, Philadelphia, PA in 1948.
Marie joined the Maryknoll Sisters September 4, 1948 at the Venard (Novitiate), Clarks Summit, PA. She professed First Vows March 7, 1951 at the Center and Final Vows March 7, 1954 also at the Center. She earned a Bachelor of Science in Education from Rogers College, Maryknoll, NY in 1954. After graduation she was assigned to teach in Maryknoll schools in Chinatown, NY and the South Bronx, NY from 1954 to ‘55.
Her first overseas assignment was to Hawaii in 1960 where she taught in Kalihi. She also served in the remote atoll of Likiep in the Marshall Islands as teacher, Principal and head of a boarding school. Altogether she spent twenty-two years in teaching, mostly at junior high level. For Marie, “Sharing in so many lives: students, parents, and co-workers was a great blessing.”
She served two terms as Regional Coordinator for the Maryknoll Sisters in the Central Pacific and later as coordinator of personnel services for employees at the Sisters Center in New York and also served in the Social Concerns Office.
In Honolulu she worked in a variety of outreach programs in low-income housing areas.
Since 1986 Sister Marie focused on the needs of women. She is one of the founding members of three organizations: Women’s Concerns Committee, Interfaith Network Against Domestic Violence and Walking with Women. The issue of domestic violence was a primary concern and the three groups collaborated to provide educational workshops, presentations and worship services for clergy and church goers. She was involved with the Hawaii State Commission on the Status of Women for legislative advocacy, and contributed to a yearlong study for violence prevention education in schools pre-K to 12. She volunteered with S.O.S. (Sisters Offering Support), a Hawaii based non-profit organization providing prostitution intervention through education, awareness and support for women exiting the sex industry.
Sister Marie Rosso received the Oahu Unsung Hero Award in 1997 “In appreciation of her many years of exceptional service dedicated to safety and freedom for battered women of Oahu.”
In 2006 Sister Marie joined the Maryknoll Sisters Retirement community in Monrovia, CA. Then June 1, 2013, Sister was welcomed to the retirement community in the Maryknoll Sisters Center, N.Y.