St. Vincent de Paul Church at Nazareth was filled with music, stories and memories as Sisters, family and friends gathered to honor Paula Merrill, SCN, and Margaret Held, OSF, 10 years after their tragic deaths.
The remembrance began with a vigil Monday evening, followed by a memorial Mass on Tuesday. Both gatherings held space for grief while celebrating the lives of two women who served God by caring for people in rural Mississippi.
During the Mass, Sister Susan Gatz shared a story that captured who Sisters Paula and Margaret were.
Rose, an older woman who regularly visited the clinic where the Sisters worked, eventually became unable to travel. Sister Paula began visiting her at home, checking on her health, running errands, cleaning and spending time with her.
When Rose later moved into a nursing facility, Sister Paula continued to visit. One day, a staff member asked Rose who was coming down the hall. Rose could no longer remember Paula’s name, but she knew exactly who she was.
“Oh, she’s the one who loves me,” Rose said.
“That’s how they were,” Sister Susan told those gathered. “They cared for people, but they also cared about people.”
Sister Adeline Fehribach speaks during a memorial Mass Tuesday.
Sisters Paula and Margaret were murdered in their home in Durant, Mississippi, on Aug. 25, 2016. Their deaths shocked Holmes County, their religious communities and people across the country who had come to know their ministry. In 2018, Rodney Earl Sanders pleaded guilty in connection with the murders and was sentenced to life in prison without parole. The Sisters’ families and religious communities opposed the death penalty, consistent with their Catholic faith and commitment to the dignity of every human life.
At the sentencing, Sister Susan spoke about the pain and injustice caused by the crime, including the loss of care for people who depended on the Sisters. In the name of the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth, she also offered Sanders forgiveness, following the example of Jesus, and prayed that he might change his life.
That same spirit of faith and mercy was present throughout the anniversary Mass, which included prayers for an end to violence, the abolition of the death penalty and greater access to compassionate health care in Holmes County and beyond.
As the community sang “On Eagle’s Wings,” those gathered were reminded that Sisters Paula and Margaret’s story is about more than the circumstances that ended their lives. It is about the way they lived, the people they loved and the work that continues because they were there.
Their lives still call others to recognize Christ in those who are sick, poor, forgotten or afraid and, as Sister Paula would say, to simply do what needs to be done.