LIVONIA, Mich. — A convent outside of Detroit has lost 13 nuns to the coronavirus, 12 of them died in one month, according to CNN and The New York Times.
The sisters, aged 69 to 99, were all part of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary convent in Livonia, Michigan. The group lost 12 nuns over the course of a month from April 10 to May 10. A 13th sister died on June 27.
"We grieve for each of our sisters who has passed during the time of the pandemic throughout the province, and we greatly appreciate all of those who are holding us in prayer and supporting us in a number of ways," Sister Mary Christopher Moore, provincial minister of Our Lady of Hope Province, told several news outlets.
The sisters were teachers, librarians, authors, nurses and musicians, to name the occupations of a few.
They all lived together and were members of the Congregation of the Sisters of St. Felix of Cantalice, or Felician Sisters, according to Global Sisters Report.
"I get chills thinking about that," Sr. Mary Andrew Budinski, the superior of the Livonia convent, told GSR. "The raw grief is yet to come, I think."
GSR reports that the Felician Sisters of North America took the virus seriously ordering no visitors, no shopping trips, and no group activities when the virus first spread across the U.S. in March.
The congregation has about 60 convents across North America that include 469 sisters, according to The Times.
Part of the covenant included a three-story wing housing sisters with varying levels of care, according to GSR. On the first floor was for sisters needing 24-hour care, the second floor had assisted living and the third floor was independent living. Once home to 800 sisters, the 360-acre campus is largely empty with about 50 current residents.
Below are the 13 women who died. Each name forwards to a short obituary provided by GSR.
Sister Mary Luiza Wawrzyniak, 99, died on Good Friday, April 10. Her death was succeded by Sister Celine Marie Lesinski, 92, and Sister Mary Estelle Printz, 95, deaths two days later on Easter Sunday.
Over the next few weeks 10 more sisters died including Sister Thomas Marie Wadowski, 73, Sister Mary Patricia Pyszynski, 93, Sister Mary Clarence (Adeline) Borkoski, 83, Sister Rose Mary Wolak, 86, Sister Mary Janice (Margaret) Zolkowski, 86, Sister Mary Alice Ann (Fernanda) Gradowski, 73, Sister Victoria Marie Indyk, 69, Sister Mary Martinez (Virginia) Rozek, 87, and Sister Mary Madeleine (Frances) Dolan, 82.
A 13th virus victim, Sister Mary Danatha (Lottie) Suchyta, 98, died at the end of June.
A total of 30 sisters were infected with the virus, with 17 recovering, according to CNN.
For most people, the new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia and death.
The United States has more than 3.9 million confirmed cases of COVID-19, according to statistics from Johns Hopkins University.
Just after 12:30 p.m. EDT Thursday, the U.S. had more than 143,00 deaths from the virus. Worldwide, there are more than 16 million confirmed cases with more than 624,000 deaths.
