Mary Elizabeth was born to William Monroe and Edna Elizabeth Sapp Mattingly on August 20,1908. Her faith journey began with baptism on October 3, 1908 at St. Francis of Assisi Church, Chicago, Ky.
She began her formal education at Loretto, Ky. She attended Mount Saint Joseph Academy. On June 21, 1924, Mary Elizabeth, along with nine other young women, entered the novitiate at Mount Saint Joseph to begin preparation for life as an Ursuline. She received the Ursuline habit and the name Sister Mary Lucy on March 19, 1925.
Her first assignments were keeping house at Earlington, Calvary, Louisville, Fairfield (St. Columba), Stanley, and St. Francis, Ky., and Snyder and Nebraska City, Neb. Her teaching assignments were at Earlington, Central City, Vine Grove and Hawesville, Ky., where she taught primary grades. In the summer months she attended Brescia College. She retired from teaching at Hawesville, where she had taught for 12 years.
After retiring from teaching in 1979, she spent three years at Rome, Ky., joyfully active in sewing, crocheting, knitting, tutoring young children, growing plants and flowers, and cooking.
In 1981, Sister Mary Lucy retired to the Motherhouse and continued with her sewing and needlecrafts. As her health declined, she moved into the infirmary. In June 2002, she was among the original group that moved into the new health care facility, Saint Joseph Villa. Shortly after her arrival there, she was confined to a wheel chair. She found excitement in this new mode of transportation and diligently explored the three wings of the expansive new facility, looking for a way to get outside. “Where’s Sister Mary Lucy?” became a constant concern for the nursing staff.
In early May 2003, her health rapidly declined. On May 25th, she quietly lost breath and died. The wake service was held at Mount Saint Joseph, Tuesday evening, May 27, followed by the funeral liturgy celebrated by Father Joseph Mills, chaplain, on Wednesday, May 28, 2003. Sister Mary Lucy’s remains are buried in the convent cemetery. Her half‑sister, Sister Joetta Mattingly, OSU, preceded her in death.