Sister Maria Armelinda

Sister Maria Armelinda       ND 4198            ⇒ PDF Download
Armelinda Donatto

Our Lady Aparecida Province, Canoas, RS – Brazil

Date and place of birth:                December 21st, 1922       Passo Fundo, RS
Date and place of profession:      February 10th, 1949          Passo Fundo, RS
Date and place of death:     March 15th, 2015     Recanto Aparecida, Canoas, RS
Date and place of burial:    March 16th, 2015     Convent Cemetery, Canoas, RS

Blessed are the peacemakers; they shall be called children of God. Matthew 5:9

Death for the Christian is the passage from time to eternity. It is the door that opens to enter into life, to the contemplation of God face to face. On March 15^th, at 4.40 pm, the door opened and faith tells us that Sister Maria Armelinda was welcomed into the embrace of a loving Father.

The couple, Ângelo Donatto and Eliza Feroni, born in Italy, were blessed with ten children. Armelinda being the ninth. The family dedicated themselves to agriculture.

Armelinda, a young woman of her time, initially thought of having a family, but the Lord had different plans for her. Her youngest sister, Otilia Letícia had already entered the Congregation of the Sisters of Notre Dame. Motivated by the same ideal, she gave her engagement ring back and followed the vocation to consecrated religious life, entering the Novitiate in Passo Fundo on February 12, 1947. Sister gave her life to God in the Congregation of the Sisters of Notre Dame for 66 years.

In her ministry, she dedicated most of her life to nursing. With her calm, peaceful and caring way, she conquered the hearts of her patients. Her love and respect for people were always part of her life. She was never tired of staying near her patients, bringing them bodily as well as spiritual comfort, seeing God himself in each suffering person.

In 1982, leaving the direct work as a nurse in hospitals, she occupied herself with the Health Pastoral. She visited the sick in hospitals and at home, prepared them to receive the sacraments of Reconciliation and Eucharist as food and strength for the journey. She was asked to take the Eucharist to the elderly and sick people who could not participate in the Eucharistic celebration.

Sister nurtured the spiritual life, was kind and noble in her attitudes, quiet and gentle in her way of being. For 22 long years, Sister Maria Armelinda exercised the role of local superior. She was sympathetic with the Sisters and enjoyed community life. For ten years she resided at the Formation House in Nova Santa Rita, being a pleasant presence for the formees. During this time, she frequently came to Recanto Aparecida to give massages to the elderly Sisters and others who asked for this help.

At Recanto Aparecida, her last residence since 2011, she visited her Sisters and prayed with them. With skilled hands, she occupied herself with crafts, especially crochet.

Her family bonds were strong and she enjoyed visiting them. Prevented by age and health, she was glad when her brother, nephews, and family came to visit her.

In their old age, the two religious sisters, Sisters Maria Armelinda and Maria Leticia, were inseparable and dependent on each other. They shared life and prayed together. With the death of Sister Maria Letícia, in September 2013, Sister Maria Armelinda regressed in physical and emotional health, longing for her sister. The passage to the final Easter for Sister Maria Armelinda on March 15th, 2015, leaves us with the certainty that she continues her presence in our hearts through her witness of life, her fidelity and internalization of our Notre Dame charism. Sister went peacefully to meet God, surrounded by her Sisters. We can say of Sister Maria Armelinda: “Blessed are the peacemakers; they shall be called children of God.”