Friday, July 20, 2012

Beloved Irish American Catholic nun is mourned

 Sister Jacqueline WalshA beloved Catholic nun, who was killed in a hit-and-run crash on Long Island early last week, was mourned at her funeral on Saturday.

“What kind of nun you know listens to Jennifer Lopez?” a mourner asked parishioners during a eulogy at St. Edward Confessor Church in Syosset, according to the New York Post.

Irish American Sister Jacqueline Walsh, 59, a pastoral associate at the church who counseled younger Catholics, had been lecturing a young parishioner about missing Mass when the teen noticed she was holding an iPod.

When asked, Walsh admitted she was a J.Lo fan.

Seventeen-year-old Deirdre Cooney said: “She was one of the biggest role models in my life. 
She came to Splish Splash water park with us every summer and rode the big slides. She loved having fun."

“She was full of life and she was everyone’s best friend."

Cathy Schlaich knew Walsh for 26 years.

“Sister Jackie was a unique, beautiful, fun-loving and happy person. She made everybody smile.”

Walsh was killed while she was strolling near the Sisters of Mercy estate in Water Mill, where she was attending a weeklong religious retreat.

The alleged suspect is a 28-year-old Guatemalan immigrant, whose name was withheld at the request of authorities, worked as a groundskeeper at Hamptons mansions. 

The car was abandoned a half-mile from the scene and the suspect has been on the run since.

Walsh was laid to rest at the Cemetery of the Holy Rood in Westbury.