Sr. Bernadette Marie Longtin, SHCJ

Bernadette Longtin, SHCJ

October 18, 1939 – December 15, 2024

Educator, Administrator, American Province Leader, Social Worker

Rosemont, Pennsylvania – Bernadette Longtin, a Sister of the Holy Child Jesus, died peacefully on Sunday, December 15, 2024, in Washington, D.C. She was 85.

For 59 years, Sister Bernadette ministered as a Holy Child Sister with a quiet sense of service and gratitude, which deepened as she fulfilled each of her many roles. At her 50th Jubilee, Sister Bernadette dedicated the celebration to all of the people and experiences God had placed in her life. 

Sister Bernadette first met the Sisters of the Holy Child Jesus as a student at Holy Child Academy in Sharon Hill, Pennsylvania. After high school graduation, she attended Rosemont College, founded by the Sisters in 1921. She started her career in education as a teacher at her alma mater, Holy Child Academy, immediately following her college graduation.

Sister Bernadette entered the Society of the Holy Child Jesus in 1962 and made her first and final vows in 1965 and 1970, respectively. She became well known by her religious name Sister Mary Lucien. 

As a Holy Child Sister, Sister Bernadette taught at the Rosemont Senior School (1962-67) and Saint Leonard Academy in Philadelphia (1967-72). She served as head of school at Saint Leonard’s (1972-73 and 1974-79) and the School of the Holy Child in Rye, New York (1979-83).

Sister Bernadette was appointed Province Leader of the American Province in 1983. For the next six years, she experienced “the joys and challenges of working with the Sisters in fulfilling the Society’s mission of ‘helping others to believe that God lives and acts in them.’”

In 1990, Sister Bernadette enrolled in graduate school to study social work. She then worked for nine years at Bridgewater State Hospital in Bridgewater, Massachusetts. In 2000, she was named director of the American Province’s Novices and moved to Washington, D.C., where she lived for the next 24 years. While working with the province’s novitiates, Sister Bernadette continued her ministry in clinical social work at a Catholic Charities program that provided transitional housing and supportive services for homeless families in the District. In September 2015, Sister Bernadette had the honor of attending a luncheon in honor of Pope Francis’ visit, where he interacted with the homeless population. 

In her retirement, Sister Bernadette continued to work as a volunteer for Catholic Charities as a supervisor for social work interns for a program that supports young people and their families experiencing mental health issues.

Sister Bernadette earned a Bachelor of Arts in history and political science from Rosemont College in 1961, a Master of Arts in American history from Villanova University in 1968, and a Master of Social Work from Boston College in 1992. 

She joins her parents, Lucien and Helen (nee King), in eternal rest. She is survived by her brother, Father Lucien Longtin, SJ, and sister, Joan (nee Longtin) Pane, and nieces Kim and Jennifer.

Friends and family are invited to a Prayer of Remembrance on Friday, December 20, 2024, at 4:00 p.m., and a Mass of Christian Burial on Saturday, December 21, 2024, at 11:00 a.m., at Holy Child Chapel, 1341 Montgomery Avenue, Rosemont, Pennsylvania 19010. Preceding Mass, friends and family are welcome to attend the visitation at 10:00 a.m. 

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be sent to the Society of the Holy Child Jesus – American Province, 1341 Montgomery Avenue, Rosemont, Pennsylvania 19041, or made online at https://www.shcj.org/american/donate/.