2024 Jubiliarian
“You never know how you affect people,” Sister Ada (Paul) McMahon says, recalling a note from a former student thanking her for helping him to love education, which became his profession.
As a high school teacher who served for nearly 20 years in the Dioceses of Pittsburgh and Greensburg, Sister Ada brought the natural curiosity that sparked her love of science as a child into the classroom. “I just loved the people, the kids, the parents,” she recalls.
Serving alongside her co-principal Sister Barbara Balog, Sister Ada took on an administrator role at Holy Rosary in Perrine, FL, for 13 years before returning to Western PA in 1990 to work in supportive housing for older adults. “I do what I can to make their life easier,” she says. “Sometimes, it’s just listening, trying to spread the peace that we need.”
Compassionate, curious, and genuine, Sister Ada relishes the chance “to love everyone and know that they are God’s creatures and that whatever we do, we’re doing in conjunction with His will and His plan.”
Send a note to Sister Ada or make a donation in her honor.