SINSINAWA, Wis. — Sr. John Eudes Courtney, OP, died December 22, 2017. The funeral Mass was held at the Sinsinawa Dominican motherhouse, Sinsinawa, January 2, 2017, followed by burial in the Motherhouse Cemetery.
Sister John made her first religious profession as a Sinsinawa Dominican August 5, 1949, and her final profession August 5, 1952. She taught high school English for 30 years. Ministries she held for one year include pastoral ministry, community organizer, prison visitor, and librarian, along with four years in transportation. She served in Ill., Minn., Mo., Neb., Wis., Tenn., Va., and Ky.
Sister John was inspiration for the character of Mary Clancy in the book Life with Mother Superior by Jane Trahey and the 1966 movie The Trouble with Angels starring Hayley Mills as Mary Clancy. Ms. Trahey and Sister John — then known as Mary — were high school friends at Providence High School, Chicago.
In the Diocese of Madison, Sister John served the Sinsinawa Dominican Congregation in the transportation department at the motherhouse, Sinsinawa, 1989-1993.
Sister John was born September 26, 1922, in Chicago, the daughter of Harvey and Josephine (Ogden) Courtney. Her parents and a brother, Harvey Courtney Jr., preceded her in death. She is survived by nieces, nephews, and her Dominican Sisters with whom she shared 68 years of religious life.
Memorials may be made to the Sinsinawa Dominicans, 585 County Road Z, Sinsinawa, WI, 53824-9701 or online at www.sinsinawa.org/donate
Repeat broadcasts of the wake and funeral for Sister John are available online at www.sinsinawa.org/live
Click on the “on demand” tab.