Sister Margaret MacDonell (S.S. Margaret of the Cross), a Sister of the Congregation of Notre Dame, died at the CND Health Care Center on September 28, 2023 in her 76th year of religious life.
Margaret was born in Hillsdale, Inverness County, NS on December 13, 1920, the daughter of the late William and Sarah (MacEachern) MacDonell. Sher entered the Congregation of Notre Dame in 1945 and made First Vows in 1947.
We are grateful for Margaret’s life and her loving commitment to God which was expressed through her life of mission and service within the Congregation of Notre Dame. Margaret was ever a teacher and dedicated to the students in her care. Her greatest joy was teaching within the Celtic Studies Department at St. FX University. She drew many students to the beauty of the Celtic language and opened minds and hearts to Celtic culture and literature. In this way she ensured that the language and way of seeing the world would endure for future generations.
Sister Margaret began her teaching career at Mount Saint Bernard and Holy Angels in Sydney, NS. After receiving a PHD in Celtic Languages and Literature from Harvard University, she served at St. Francis Xavier University in Antigonish, NS as professor and chair of the Celtic Studies Department.
In April of 2023, Sister Margaret received the Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee Medal in recognition of her valuable contribution to Nova Scotia in the preservation and elevation of the language and encouraging and mentoring of numerous students to become Gaelic speakers and community leaders.
Sister Margaret’s final years were spent at Parkland Cape Breton and the CND Health Care Center where she focused on intercessory prayer and personal presence.
Sr. Margaret is survived by sisters Jessie Murphy and Elizabeth MacDonell and sister-in-law Theresa. She was predeceased by brothers Alex and Father Malcolm and two in infancy Duncan Colin and Duncan Archie; sisters Mary Boyd and Annie Gillis; brothers-in-law Hugh Duncan Gillis, Ed Murphy and Andrew Boyd. She is also survived by numerous loving nieces, nephews, grandnieces and grandnephews. Her love for family and her genuine interest in their well-being fostered the closeness she maintained with them throughout her life.
Visitation will be held Thursday, October 5, 2023, 10:00 am at St. Andrew’s Church followed at 2:00 PM by Mass of Christian burial with Fr. Alan MacMillan, Duncan MacIssac and Doug Murphy officiating. Interment in St. Andrew’s Cemetery, Judiue, NS.
