Sister Marguerite Hruby, SS.C.M., died at Nazareth Center in Danville on February 14, the feast of Saints Cyril and Methodius. Born Ursula Bernardine Hruby on November 14, 1935, she was the daughter of Ignatius and Margaret (Dirda) Hruby, who had been married by Father Matthew Jankola, the founder of the Sisters of Saints Cyril and Methodius.
After graduating from Saint Cyril Academy in 1953, she received an RN from St Vincent’s School of Nursing in Bridgeport, Conn., in 1956. Sister Marguerite entered the Congregation of the Sisters of Saints Cyril and Methodius from St Cyril and Methodius Parish in Bridgeport on February 2, 1957, and was professed on August 13, 1959.
Sister Marguerite served in the ministry of healing for her entire religious life, as a nurse, director of nursing, and Administrator of Maria Joseph Manor in Danville, and later as a Congregational Consultant for health issues. She received her master’s in Public Administration with a graduate certificate in gerontology from Marywood University. It was her masters’ thesis on independent living for seniors which planted the seeds for what eventually bloomed as The Meadows at Maria Joseph Manor. Sister Marguerite was present in 1962 when Bishop George Leech blessed and dedicated the new home for the aged, and she was present in 2012 when Bishop Joseph McFadden celebrated the 50th anniversary of the facility.
Sister Marguerite was preceded in death by her parents, a sister, Cecelia, a brother, William, and her sister in community, Sister William.
General visitation was on Monday, February 20. A Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated in the Maria Hall Chapel by Father Gerard Heintzelman, with concelebrants Father Dennis Delassandro and Father Charles Ocul. Burial was in the Sisters’ cemetery in Danville.
Donations in memory of Sister Marguerite can be made to the Sisters of Saints Cyril and Methodius, Villa Sacred Heart, 1002 Railroad Street, Danville, PA 17821.
