The Presentation Sisters are mourning the loss of Sister Colette Stevenson (82), who died peacefully on 25 April at the Mater Hospital in Dublin. A member of the Presentation Convent at George’s Hill and originally from Turners Cross, Cork, Sr Colette is remembered with deep affection by her religious community, family, and wide circle of friends as a woman of devoted service, faith, and gentle strength.
Sr Colette had lived a rich and generous life marked by a strong sense of mission. Her Funeral Mass was celebrated on 29 April in Saint Michan’s Church on George’s Hill in Halston Street Parish, Dublin, by her brother Father Pat Stevenson of the Diocese of Cork & Ross, with Bishop Tom Deenihan of Meath, Bishop Emeritus John Fleming of Killala and other clergy concelebrating.
In a moving tribute, mourners were reminded of her vibrant, warm personality and life of purpose. “She brought us together today both to celebrate her life and to give thanks for a life lived fully in the service to God and God’s people,” said Fr Stevenson. Known for her curiosity and energy from a young age, Sr Colette joined the Presentation Sisters in Portadown after finishing school at South Pres in Cork.
Sr Colette spent years teaching in Northern Ireland during the Troubles and was actively involved in ecumenical bridge-building. Later, she studied spirituality and counselling, which led to her work at Mount Saint Anne’s Retreat Centre, where she became a sought-after facilitator for groups across Ireland.
For the past 30 years, George’s Hill was her spiritual and community home. There, she embraced community life, contributed to formation, and played a pivotal role in the Church’s safeguarding ministry, where she was widely respected for her compassion, integrity, and wisdom.
A touching communion reflection by John O’Donohue was read at her funeral by her friend Sr Kathleen Maguire, capturing the depth of grief and the enduring light she leaves behind. It read: Though we need to weep your loss, you dwell in that safe place in our hearts, where no storm of night or pain can reach you…We look towards each other, no longer from the old distance of our names; now dwell inside the rhythm of breath, as close to us as we are to ourselves.
Though we cannot see you with outward eyes, we know our soul’s gaze is upon your face miling back at us from within everything…. Let us not look for you galy in memory, where we would grow lonely without you. You would want us to find you in presence, beside us when beauty brightens, when kindness glows and music echoes eternal tones; when orchids brighten the earth and darkest winter has turned to spring;
May this dark grief,flower with hope in every heart that loves you. And may you continue to inspire us to enter each day with a generous heart, to serve the call of courage and love, until we see your face again in that land where there is no more separation, where all tears will be wiped from our mind, and where we will never lose you again.
