Sheila Finnigan (1931-2018)

Sister Sheila Finnigan, SNDdeN went home to her good God on September 24, 2019, at the age of 88 after 71 years as a Sister of Notre Dame de Namur.

Born in 1931 in Nashua, N.H., daughter of the late Patrick J. and Margaret (Cotter) Finnigan, she graduated from St. Patrick High School in Lowell. She entered the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur in 1948, known then as Sister Marguerite Patrice. Sister Sheila took her first vows in 1951 and final vows in 1956. She graduated from Emmanuel College in 1962 with a degree in French and history, and earned a master’s degree in French at Assumption College in Worcester.

Sister Sheila taught French at Bishop Stang High School in North Dartmouth, Bishop Fenwick High School in Peabody, and in Washington, D.C. She was also a French teacher and an assistant principal at St. Gregory High School in Dorchester and in Baltimore. She completed her career in education as principal at Keith Catholic High School in Lowell from 1985 through 1987.

Sister Sheila was secretary at St. Mary School in Cambridge in the 1970s. She worked in the offices of the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur in Rome from 1991 to 1992. She was a Pastoral Associate at St. Mark Church in Sutton and St. John the Evangelist Church in Clinton for many years before retiring.

Because of her mastery of French, Sister Sheila translated extensively over the years for the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur. She worked on international publications and translated at international meetings for her order.

Updated 2025