Sr. Linda O'Rourke, Dc

MENANDS - Sister Linda O'Rourke Daughter of Charity Born on October 13, 1938 to Joseph Frederick O’Rourke and Charlotte Helena Downey O’Rourke passed away Thursday January 16, 2025 at St. Louise House in Menands.  Linda grew up in Cambridge, MA. The family welcomed, brother Brian five years later.

Encounter with the Daughters of Charity was early on, when Sisters passed her home on the way to shop. Sister Madeline Igoe would stop by once or twice a week to visit her in her playpen on the front porch. Later when a school was chosen, Linda attended the Daughter’s grade and middle school at St. Vincent’s Home just a short walk from her home. She observed the maternal interest that the Sisters had for the resident children in her classes.

By middle school she became a fixture in after school activities, helping the Sisters after class and in their home on weekends. She accompanied the Sisters to the “Poorhouse” on their visits to elderly residents. Although a bit afraid of the older folks, the kindness, interest and compassion of the Sisters made it a rich experience for Linda.

Continued experience with the Sisters molded her vocation. She entered the Daughters of Charity after her high school graduation in 1956. Her formation began in Emmitsburg, MD and she was officially received into the Community on April 2, 1957.

Sr. Linda O’Rourke’s initial ministry was education, begun in St. Michael’s parish school in Overlea, MD. She served in schools in Portsmouth, VA; Richmond, VA; and Utica, NY. She had earned her BA in French from St. Joseph College in Emmitsburg in 1974. Her experience included visits to the homes of her students, which developed an awareness of family needs that impacted children. Thus, education became a broader question to address.

She was sent to Nazareth children’s home in Boston in 1980 and realized her desire to accompany children who had lived in families with trauma. While there she matriculated at the school of Social Work at Boston College from which she graduated in 1984 with an MSW in Social Work which focused on child and family therapy. Her ministry of Social Work found Sister involved in Albany at St. Catherine’s Child Care Center, later with Catholic Charities and leadership of services on the Boston North Shore and Lynn. Returning to the New York Capital Region in 2000, Sister Linda became the Director of the Roarke Center, in Troy, reaching out to persons living with chronic mental health issues, disabilities, and post incarceration community incorporation. In 2013 Sister retired to social work outreach in Emmitsburg Maryland, and later in Binghamton, NY.

Sister moved to St. Louise House in 2021 because of health reasons. She served in a ministry of prayer until her death on January 16, 2025.

Sister Linda is predeceased by her parents, her brother, Brian and sister-in-law, Antonetta Mary. She is survived by nephews Joseph Brian O’Rourke, William and Renee O’Rourke, niece, Susan Lynn Hamm, James Hamm and grand nephews, Benjamin and Nathaniel Hamm, Michael and Ann Swezey, Timothy and Karen Smith, her Sisters, the Daughters of Charity, and many friends and colleagues.

A wake service will be held for Sister Linda O’Rourke on Tuesday, January 21, 2025 at DePaul Residence, 96 Menands Rd, Menands from 4-7 pm. Sister’s funeral will be on Wednesday, January 22, 2025 in DePaul chapel at 10:30 am. Interment will follow in St Agnes Cemetery in Menands.

Donations may be made to: Daughters of Charity, 4330 Olive Street, St. Louis, MO 63108.