Sister Paul Marie Greenwell, 90, an Ursuline Sister of Mount Saint Joseph, died Jan. 3, 2026, at Mount Saint Joseph, in her 73rd year of religious life. She was a native of New Haven, Ky.

Sister Paul Marie always enjoyed interacting with others, and sharing her gifts with those she met, including her deep spirituality. She was a 1970 graduate of Brescia College (now University), Owensboro, Ky.

She was a teacher in Kentucky at St. Benedict School, Wax (1955-62), St. Denis School, Fancy Farm (1962-63), St. Michael School, Fairfield (1963-68) and St. Peter of Antioch School, Waverly (1968-70). She then taught at Seven Holy Founders School, Affton, Mo., (1970-86). She was secretary at the Mount Saint Joseph Conference and Retreat Center (1986-89) and at St. Mary Magdalene Parish, Sorgho, Ky., (1990-91), served in outreach in Marshall County, Ky., (1989-90), and served as administrative assistant to St. William and St. Lawrence parishes, Knottsville, Ky., (1991-2006). At the Motherhouse, she offered transportation to the Sisters (2006-07) and served as an assistant to the archivist (2008-16).

Survivors include the members of her religious community; two sisters, Sister Margaret Marie Greenwell, OSU, of Maple Mount, and Janice Newton of Bardstown, Ky.; nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her parents, Paul Hogarty and Margaret Marie Greenwell, and her brother, Homer Greenwell.

The funeral Mass will be at 10:30 a.m. Thursday, Jan. 8, at Mount Saint Joseph, where visitation will begin Wednesday at 4 p.m., with a wake service following at 6:30 p.m.

Glenn Funeral Home and Crematory, Owensboro, is in charge of arrangements.

Gifts in memory of Sister Paul Marie may take the form of donations to the Ursuline Sisters of Mount Saint Joseph, 8001 Cummings Road, Maple Mount, KY 42356.

Wake Reflection

Jan. 7, 2026

By Sister Sharon Sullivan, congregational leader

We heard these words within the Gospel of Matthew (2:1b-2, 11-12) for the Epiphany of the Lord on Sunday, January 4^th:

“. . . behold magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem, saying, ‘Where is the newborn King of the Jews? We saw his star at its rising and have come to do him homage.’ . . . [and] they saw the child [and] did him homage. Then they opened their treasures and offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. And having been warned in a dream. . . they departed for their country by another way.”

The Magi heard (or saw) a call, understood what gifts they had to share, followed steadfastly a path clear to them, and departed “another way.”

Sister Paul Marie Greenwell departed another way in the night of Saturday, January 3^rd; perhaps it was most fitting that she was called home on the Vigil of Epiphany. For she, like the Magi, heard a clear call early in her life, understood the gifts she had to share, and followed the path with constancy in service and love of her Savior and Lord.

On a warm Thursday morning, in New Haven, Kentucky, on August 22, 1935, tiny Rita Germaine Greenwell joined the growing family of Paul Hogarty and Margaret Marie Greenwell, and within a week – on the next Thursday, August 29, Rita began her faith journey as she was baptized at Saint Catherine Church in New Haven. By the time she had just turned three, she was joined by her dear sister, Helen (our Sister Margaret Marie); and within two more years came her brother Homer, followed at last by Janice. And the roll-call of that generation of the Greenwell family was complete.

Little Rita, our Sister Paul Marie, was devoted to her family. And to Sister Margaret Marie and to Janice, and to Sister Paul Marie’s nieces and nephews, we Ursuline Sisters of Mount Saint Joseph offer our love and condolences as you celebrate Sister Paul Marie’s life with us.

A faithful citizen of New Haven, Rita Germaine began her education at Saint Catherine School with the Ursuline Sisters as her guides and teachers. When she reached seven years old, she began her preparation for the Sacrament of Confirmation and was confirmed then at Saint Catherine’s with all due ceremony on Sunday, May 16, 1943.

It was hard – but not quite impossible – to discover just when young Rita knew she must become an Ursuline Sister of Mount Saint Joseph. We do know, when she was just sixteen and finishing her sophomore year at Saint Catherine High School, early in July of 1952, that Rita completed her formal application to become an Ursuline Sister. In response to the question on the form, “What is your motive in wishing to become a Religious?”, she wrote: “To love and to serve God better. . .”, a motive similar to words many other applicants had written. But, as with the Magi of old who noticed and followed the star, Rita Germaine felt a more certain call, even at sixteen; for she added – in smaller letters under the line provided – evidence of her own, writing: “and also because I think that God has called me to this vocation.” And that was all she needed.

Two months later, and now a much older woman of seventeen, on a warm Sunday, September 7, 1952, Rita Germaine Greenwell became a postulant of the Ursuline Sisters, and began attending Mount Saint Joseph Academy. In less than a year, at not quite eighteen years old, Rita entered the novitiate and adopted a new name in honor of her parents – Sister Paul Marie Greenwell. She was joined by sixteen other novices. Of that magnificent class, only three remain – Sister Margaret Ann Aull, Sister Catherine Barber, and Sister Mary Gerald Payne. To these three, we offer our love and prayers, as you grieve the passing of your classmate.

Over the next two years, Sister Paul Marie completed both her novitiate and her high school studies, graduating in June 1955, and making her temporary profession on August 15, 1955. Her twentieth birthday was one week later, and in less than two more weeks, Sister Paul Marie was teaching fourth and fifth grade at Saint Benedict School in Wax, Kentucky. One of her former students, Sister Cheryl Clemons, recalled that Sister Paul Marie was an engaged teacher, one who often “played a lot of games with us after school” and one who supported and encouraged her young students in their love of music.

Seven years later, in 1962, after Saint Benedict School closed, and while still pursuing her own teaching degree, Sister Paul Marie moved to Saint Denis in Fancy Farm to teach grades five through eight. When Saint Denis closed one year later, she moved to Saint Michael’s in Fairfield and Saint Peter of Antioch in Waverly. By 1970, she had completed her Bachelor of Science degree at Brescia College, and went on to Seven Holy Founders in Affton, Missouri, where she would teach eighth graders for the next sixteen years.

Over these thirty-one years of teaching ministry, Sister Paul Marie was able – like the Magi of old – to name and offer her gifts. She would write of her skills:

• I have the ability to relate with Junior High students.
• I like organizing and organization.
• I am good at cooking. [I have it from a reliable source that she could make outstanding banana bread.]

Her students and colleagues affirmed these gifts that Sister Paul Marie brought in service of the Christ Child, saying of her:

• She showed great respect for her students.
• She was tough, but we learned a lot.
• I credit her with my strong math skills.
• She was kind, fun, helpful, special, patient. . . .

But times were changing. Sister Paul Marie’s teacher certificate in Kentucky had expired, and new regulations were requiring teachers to get graduate credit and master’s degrees. Sister Paul Marie, perhaps again like the Magi, had her own understanding of God’s call for her – in spite of whatever the government might require. So, when asked what plans she had for responding to the new regulations, she shared, “I have no desire to obtain a master’s degree. When my certificates run out, I’m sure I [still] can do something useful for the community.”

And sure enough, her gift for organizing and record keeping came to the fore. Over the next twenty years, she served as treasurer and administrative assistant first at the Mount Saint Joseph Conference and Retreat Center, then at Saint Mary Magdalene Parish in Sorgho, and for fifteen years at Saint William and Saint Lawrence parishes in Knottsville, Kentucky. Countless families and spiritual seekers benefitted from her gift for acceptance, her sense of humor, and her organizational skills.

By 2006, Sister Paul Marie came home to Mount Saint Joseph where she served for a year or two as a driver then gave her organizational skills to the archives until she retired in 2016. The few archival annals we found from Sister Paul Marie highlighted her love of travel – and many, if not most, reflected her love of visiting family – perhaps accompanied by her tasty banana bread. Those who shared her pilgrimage to Rome remembered Sister Paul Marie as “so much fun and full of life.”

In her last decade, Sister Paul Marie joined the Powerhouse of Prayer and devoted much of her time and attention to being present to her dear sister, Sister Margaret Marie. Over these years, she was supported by the sisters and staff in the Villa; and to the Villa staff we offer our thanks and our prayers.

As January 3^rd approached, we do not know if Sister Paul Marie experienced a guiding dream, but as the old year ended and the new began, she certainly felt her God calling her to follow another way home. We know and believe that she is now sharing her gifts within that heavenly embrace; and we offer our thanks and blessings that she could share them with us.