Linda Bessom

Sister Linda Bessom, SNDdeN, the oldest of six children, was born in Salem and raised in Lynn, Massachusetts. Her parents set strong examples for the young Sister Linda, instilling in her principles that would go on to guide her through her life of service to others. Her father, a convert to the Catholic faith, was a lead mechanic for Delta Airlines. His diligence and determination at his job taught her the value of “taking a stand when it comes to other people’s lives.” Her mother inspired her through the love and persistence with which she took care of the youngest member of the family, Sister Linda’s sister, who suffers from developmental disabilities.

Sister Linda first met the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur while a student at St. Mary’s high school in Lynn. She was galvanized by these Sisters and what she learned about Vatican II, which was then in progress.

When Sister Linda entered the congregation, she took the name Mary Eileen, after her youngest sister. She began her ministries as an educator, teaching at St. Monica’s in Methuen, Massachusetts. Inexperienced and straight out of the novitiate, she was immediately faced with a classroom brimming with 48 second graders! She went on to teach at several schools in Massachusetts and New Hampshire.

Upon graduating from the Maryknoll School of Theology in Maryknoll, New York, with a master’s degree, she returned to Boston to serve as a campus minister at Emmanuel College.

Sister Linda is a passionate and lifelong advocate for social justice. She was influenced by Sister Mary Augusta Neal, SNDdeN, a professor of sociology at Emmanuel College, whose writings stress systemic solutions and the importance of standing with those made poor in the most abandoned of places.

“The Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur taught me,” she reflects, “that the hopes and dreams of the people who are most in need are what a follower of Christ takes on.”

She has worked in Boston as a justice and peace coordinator at the Justice and Peace Center and, from 1995 to 2014, she was outreach coordinator for the Massachusetts Coalition for the Homeless, with whom she still volunteers. She is a member of Pax Christi, a Catholic non-violence and peace organization, is active in advocating for medical civil rights and racial justice and has served on the U.S. East-West Anti-Racism Team  since 2002.

At this time of her 60-year Jubilee in 2024, she shared that she is deeply grateful for how God has led her down this path.

Updated 2026