Sister Catherine E Colliton
How do you know Catherine? Please share your stories and photos, and help spread the word about this page!
Sister Catherine (formerly Sister M. Alisa Francis) Colliton, 86, a Sister of Mercy for 66 years, died February 20, 2021, at the Edgewood Centre, Portsmouth, New Hampshire, after a period of declining health. Born in Holyoke, Massachusetts, and raised in New Castle, New Hampshire, she was the daughter of the late Frank and Alice (Gilligan) Colliton.
Sister Catherine held an M.A. degree in Latin from Boston College, and a B.A. degree in Latin from Mount Saint Mary College, Hooksett, New Hampshire. She was a dedicated educator who taught in schools in New Hampshire and Newport News, Virginia. In New Hampshire, she taught at Immaculata and St. Joseph High Schools in Manchester, Bishop Brady High School in Concord, Sacred Heart School in Hampton, and Castle College in Windham where she also served as academic advisor and community service coordinator. In Newport News, she taught at Peninsula Catholic High School.
In 1998, Sister Catherine was elected to the New Hampshire Regional Community Leadership Team where she served two terms, her second term in the capacity of vice president. In 2006, Sister Catherine began ministry as a caregiver for her family. She also did community outreach on the Seacoast, a ministry she continued until she entered Edgewood Centre in 2020. She is best remembered for her wonderful sense of humor and her commitment to social justice issues.
Sister Catherine is survived by members of her Mercy Community, her nieces, Kathleen Weisbruch and Laura Mounce, her nephew, Frank Colliton III, and her cousin, Chris Benson. She was predeceased by her sisters, Rosemary, Ellen and Sister Justine Colliton, RSM, and her brother, Frank Colliton, Jr.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Friday, February 26, at 10 a.m., at Corpus Christi Parish, 98 Summer Street, Portsmouth, New Hampshire.
Memorial donations may be made to the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas, Northeast, 15 Highland View Road, Cumberland, RI 02864-1124, and online at www.sistersofmercy.org/northeast.
Burial will be at a later date at Calvary Cemetery, Portsmouth, New Hampshire
Farrell Funeral Home, Portsmouth, NH