Rita was the daughter of Simeon and Margaret Lanham Payne, a pioneer Catholic family of Daviess County, Ky. Her home parish was St. Lawrence in the rural community of Philpot. At the age of 21, she entered the novitiate at Mount Saint Joseph. She received the Ursuline habit on May 31, 1907 and the name Sister Merici.
As a novice, Sister Merici assisted in the art department of Mount Saint Joseph Academy. She began teaching in primary grades at St. Paul School in Louisville, Ky. While teaching at St.Paul, she studied painting from a Sister of Saint Joseph. Other teaching assignments in Kentucky were Hardinsburg (St. Romuald) and Stithton (St. Patrick). She had a special gentleness for teaching small children. Following these few years of teaching, she returned to Mount Saint Joseph Academy to continue her work in the art studio. She studied clay modeling from Brother Alban Paul Clements, who spent the summer of 1916 on the campus at Mount Saint Joseph. Sister Merici taught oil painting, china painting, watercolor, charcoal portrait drawing and needlepoint. The Sisters also learned techniques in school art for their classroom teaching from her.
Sister Merici became ill around Christmas time in 1919. She slowly regained strength enough for limited activity. She died suddenly of pneumonia on March 4, 1920. The funeral Mass was offered on March 6, in the Motherhouse chapel. Sister Merici’s remains were carried in procession to the convent cemetery for burial. At the time of her death she had four nieces who were Mount Saint Joseph Ursulines — Sisters Dorothy Payne, Virginia Payne and Ignatius Payne (blood sisters), and Sister Mary Janette Mattingly.