Summer 2015: Obituary, Sr. Mary Virginia Sayers, SJW

    Sister Mary Virginia Sayers, a Sister of St. Joseph the Worker, died at Taylor Manor Nursing Home on Feb. 18, 2015. Inspired by the stories she heard as a young girl from a visiting missionary, Sister decided to become a missionary sister who would help care for the medical needs of the poor in mission countries.

    After completing her medical studies at Georgetown University she made her final vows on August 15, 1957 and then went to Bangladesh for a year. In 1960, Sister went to Vietnam to help open a hospital in Qui Nhon. She spent 15 happy years there, serving the sick and performing a wide variety of surgeries. During her time in the missions, Sister was often the only physician available. The missions were so poor that often Sister had to devise her own medical equipment from the supplies that were on hand. She was on the last flight out of the city she was working in before it was taken over by the Viet Cong.

    After her time in Vietnam, she spent 6 years working in Pakistan before returning to the United States in 1982. She served as the Administrator and then as the assistant Administrator of Taylor Manor before retiring 2011. In her retirement, she willingly helped with the many day-to-day duties in the convent. May her soul and the souls of all the faithful departed rest in peace.