OSSINING, N.Y. -- Sister Julia Hannigan, a Maryknoll missioner to China, died Saturday, Aug. 15. She was 99 years. Hannigan was born Sept. 30, 1915, in Brooklyn to John and Julia McCleary Hannigan. Christened Julia Regina Hannigan, Sister Julia was one of five children born to the couple. All members of her immediate family have predeceased her. Hannigan joined Maryknoll Sisters on Dec. 8, 1933, with a passion to minister in China, a calling she fulfilled through work in teaching and counseling. Following her final vows on June 30, 1939, Hannigan was first sent to China, where, following a year of language study, she worked in direct evangelization in Hingning from 1941-1946 and Kaying City, from 1948-1951. Placed under house arrest in 1950, and taken with other Maryknollers including martyr Bishop Francis Xavier Ford to a Canton prison in 1951, Hannigan was deported by the Communist regime to Hong Kong. Three months later, in September 1951, she went the island of Mauritius, off the African coast, having been requested to help in the evangelization of the Hakka Chinese flocking there to escape the Communist regime. Hannigan then did promotion work at the mother house in Ossining from 1952-55. Afterwards, she worked in South Carolina, Missouri, Hong Kong, Boston, New York City, Monrovia, Calif., and Philadelphia. Hannigan is survived by her nieces, Mary Staab of Howard Beach, N.Y., and Julia Wachter and Ann Wagner of Glendale, N.Y.; and a nephew, John McShane of Howard Beach, N.Y. A vespers service will be held for on Thursday, at 4:15 p.m. in the Chapel of the Annunciation at the Maryknoll Sisters Center at Maryknoll. A Mass of Christian Burial will follow on Friday, at 11 a.m., also at the center. Interment will be in Maryknoll Sisters Cemetery on the Maryknoll Sisters Center grounds. Dorsey Funeral Home in Ossining is handling arrangements.

My prayers for sister Julia, in this somewhat belated message. I see that she was born in the same year that my mother was. I would be glad to reach 99 years (I am only 80 now :) Her part of New York was that of my own family, in its early years. I remember from my early years how missioners would go out to China, and 'China' was the the name of the 'social studies' subject that we concentrated on in a year in California schools. Japan was then off limits :). 'Maryknoll' seems fairly close to ' Marymount,' as I knew it from a 'great distance,' having attended Notre Dame International School in Rome Italy (for boys) in the year of its founding. I knew nothing of the later huge complex that was built far out (I think) on Via Aurelia. But we were kept far distant from the girls in those early days! When in 1951 she was on Mauritius, I was in the Persian Gulf, at an oil camp at Dhahran. Which signifies nothing. But which is not so far away, in world terms. What was she doing then? j > > OSSINING, N.Y. -- Sister Julia Hannigan, a Maryknoll missioner to >China, died Saturday, Aug. 15. She was 99 years. > > > > > Hannigan was born Sept. 30, 1915, in Brooklyn to John and Julia >McCleary Hannigan. Christened Julia Regina Hannigan, Sister Julia >was one of five children born to the couple. All members of her >immediate family have predeceased her. > > > > > Hannigan joined Maryknoll Sisters on Dec. 8, 1933, with a passion >to minister in China, a calling she fulfilled through work in >teaching and counseling. > > > > > Following her final vows on June 30, 1939, Hannigan was first sent >to China, where, following a year of language study, she worked in >direct evangelization in Hingning from 1941-1946 and Kaying City, >from 1948-1951. Placed under house arrest in 1950, and taken with >other Maryknollers including martyr Bishop Francis Xavier Ford to a >Canton prison in 1951, Hannigan was deported by the Communist regime >to Hong Kong. Three months later, in September 1951, she went the >island of Mauritius, off the African coast, having been requested to >help in the evangelization of the Hakka Chinese flocking there to >escape the Communist regime. > > Hannigan then did promotion work at the mother house in Ossining >from 1952-55. Afterwards, she worked in South Carolina, Missouri, >Hong Kong, Boston, New York City, Monrovia, Calif., and Philadelphia. > > > > > Hannigan is survived by her nieces, Mary Staab of Howard Beach, >N.Y., and Julia Wachter and Ann Wagner of Glendale, N.Y.; and a >nephew, John McShane of Howard Beach, N.Y. > > > > > A vespers service will be held for on Thursday, at 4:15 p.m. in the >Chapel of the Annunciation at the Maryknoll Sisters Center at >Maryknoll. > > > > > A Mass of Christian Burial will follow on Friday, at 11 a.m., also >at the center. Interment will be in Maryknoll Sisters Cemetery on >the Maryknoll Sisters Center grounds. Dorsey Funeral Home in >Ossining is handling arrangements. > >*************************************** >Have you checked out the Westchester County GenWeb site yet? >http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~nywestch/ >*************************************** >Browse or Search the Mailing List Archives of postings sent to this >list over the years. Visit >http://lists.rootsweb.ancestry.com/index/usa/NY/westchester.html#NYWESTCH >*************************************** >------------------------------- >To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to >NYWESTCH-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without >the quotes in the subject and the body of the message