Mary Vivina Bly, BVM
Mary Vivina Bly, BVM died Thursday, Sept. 17, 2015, at Marian Hall in Dubuque, Iowa. Visitation will be from 9–11 a.m. on Thursday, Sept. 24, 2015, in the Marian Hall Chapel followed by a prayer service at 11 a.m. Funeral liturgy will be at 1:30 p.m. Burial is in the Mount Carmel cemetery.
She was born in Clinton, Iowa, on April 12, 1923, to Frank Leo and Mary Helena Agnes Hook. She entered the BVM congregation Sept. 8, 1945, from St. Mary Parish, Clinton. She professed first vows on March 19, 1948, and final vows on Aug. 15, 1953.
Mary Vivina taught elementary school and was principal in Dubuque and Washington, Iowa; Rock Island, Chicago and Pontiac, Ill.; Wichita, Kan.; Kansas City, Mo.; and Milwaukee, where she also served as volunteer pastoral care minister.
She was preceded in death by her parents, sister Rose Cecilia Dolan and brother Donald Frank. She is survived by the Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, with whom she shared life for 70 years.
Sister Mary Vivina Bly, BVM
Funeral Welcome
Marian Hall, Sept. 24, 2015
Good afternoon and welcome to the celebration of life of our Sister Mary Vivina Bly.
Vivian Marie Bly was born on April 12, 1923, the first child of Frank Leo Bly and Marie Helena Agnes Hook of Clinton, Iowa. She was followed by siblings Rose Cecilia (Rocia) and Donald. Her father, a World War I veteran and photographer, died when she was 6 years old. Vivian wrote, “Our mother, a wonderful and saintly lady, was the ‘light of our lives’ for the next 50 years!” In a Salt article, Vivian recalled that during the Depression her mother borrowed regularly from a generous neighbor to supplement a monthly government check. She remembered a compassionate and generous market owner who gave her mother pork chops instead of hot dogs saying, “You’ve had enough hot dogs this week.” “My mother actually cried,” recalled Vivian.
After graduating from St. Mary HS, Vivian attended a two-year teacher training program at Mt. St. Clare Junior College in Clinton, and then taught in Fulton, Ill. She wrote, “[I] dearly loved my first and second grade youngsters. However, I soon discovered one drawback of teaching in the public schools – I could not teach these little ones about God! It was then I fully realized . . . my vocation was to the religious life.” Vivian entered the congregation on Sept. 8, 1945, and received the name Vivina upon her reception on March 19, 1946. She professed her first vows on March 19, 1948, and celebrated 70 years as a BVM at her diamond jubilee just 18 days ago.
Vivina spent 42 years in elementary education. She taught in Rock Island, Chicago, and Pontiac, Ill.; Dubuque and Washington, Iowa; Wichita, Kan., Kansas City, Mo., and Milwaukee, Wis. She served as principal at Annunciation in Kansas City; St. Mary in Pontiac; and St. James in Washington. In the midst of her teaching ministry, she spent one year ministering to the retired sisters at Guadalupe College in Los Gatos, Calif. A former student wrote: “Sister Vivina [was] tall, stern, graceful, loving . . . I had a turbulent family life and was looking for adults who would care about me, protect me and guide me . . . [She] had a profound effect on my life. She was the firm but loving presence I needed as a child. School was my refuge and Sr. Vivina was my comfort.”
While in Pontiac, Joanne Schneider and Vivina met and formed a lasting friendship. Together they traveled the United States from New York to Hawaii and Texas to Alaska. They visited the Holy Land, vacationed in the Caribbean, toured Europe, and even kissed the Blarney Stone. They spent six weeks in the Philippines on a Third World Grant about which Vivina wrote, “[It] was truly a conscious-raising experience for us because of unforeseen circumstances that provided us a week among the very rich people in the [Philippine Islands] and [time among] the poorest of the poor!”
After “retiring,” Vivina served as a pastoral care minister, bringing communion to the homebound and hospitalized of Immaculate Conception Parish in Milwaukee, where she also assisted as a teacher’s aide, a substitute teacher, a religious education teacher and even a babysitter. The parishioners loved her. She connected with the elderly in a very special way and soon their children and grandchildren were seeking her “counsel.”
When deteriorating eyesight prevented her from driving, Joanne, recognizing the enormous impact of Vivina’s ministry, offered to drive and wait in the car while Vivina spent an hour visiting with a parishioner. Proverb 31 aptly describes Vivina’s 17 years of dedicated service in parish ministry. “First thing in the morning, she dresses for work, rolls up her sleeves, eager to get started. She senses the worth of her work, is in no hurry to call it quits for the day . . . She’s quick to assist anyone in need, reaches out to help the poor.” (The Message)
Vivina saw many changes in the BVM community during her lifetime and wrote about one light-hearted moment. “[We were in] Milwaukee on Joanne Schneider’s home visit when a letter was forwarded to us giving permission for all of us to modify or change our habit. Within ten minutes, Joanne’s mom had her scissors out and cut down our black skirts and fixed them! Come to find out, she had never liked our long, black skirts!!”
Vivina was a kind and gracious woman with a strong sense of duty, a sensitivity to injustices, and an enthusiasm that was contagious. She loved to read, send greeting cards with a hand-written note, and entertain guests. Her genuine interest in people and their lives made her a great listener. She deeply loved her family and her BVM sisters and, with her students, their parents and the elderly, she kept all close to her heart and remembered them in prayer. She will definitely be remembered as a “people person.”
In retrospect, during the last few weeks, Vivina was closing various chapters in her life. She and Joanne celebrated 50 years of friendship with a special dinner for just the two of them. She celebrated her diamond jubilee surrounded by family and friends. The evening before she died, she and Joanne went out to dinner with Gabrielle Hagerty as a belated birthday celebration and with Mary Angela Buser as a thank you for a special kindness. After a final phone call from Joanne, Vivina retired to bed and died peacefully in her sleep with nothing left unfinished.
From Proverb 31: “A woman who fears the Lord is to be praised. Give her the reward she has earned, and let her works bring her praise at the city gate.” (The Message) With gratitude we remember Vivina’s long, faithful and faith-filled life and rejoice with her as she passes through the heavenly gate.