CHARLOTTE — Sister Mary Monica Perez, a Sister of Mercy for 70 years, died on Dec. 27, 2022. She was 87.
The Sisters of Mercy and her family will receive her body at 4:30 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 29, 2022, and the funeral Mass will be celebrated at 10:30 a.m. Friday, Dec. 30, 2022, at Sacred Heart Chapel on the Sisters of Mercy campus. Interment will follow at nearby Belmont Abbey Cemetery.
Sister Monica was born in Agana (now called Hagåtña), Guam, the first of six children of Ismael Cruz Perez and Ana Pangelinan. She attended elementary school at Our Lady of Guam Academy in Agana and later graduated from Sacred Heart College in Belmont with a degree in elementary education.
Sister Monica had no contact with any religious community of women until three Sisters of Mercy came to establish schools in Guam in 1946. The Sisters of Mercy were the first permanent community of Catholic religious women in Guam and the first to accept local vocations. She entered the Sisters of Mercy in 1952 and took as her motto “Thy Will Be Done.” This described her personal commitment and all that happened in her life.
After her final vows she was assigned to study and live in Belmont, where she spent her religious life.
Sister Monica taught in elementary schools as well as taught religious education programs at parishes in Asheville, Wilmington, Belmont and Concord. She served in the library of Sacred Heart College and also as director of computer services at St. Vincent de Paul Parish in Charlotte.
In recognition of her 70th jubilee anniversary as a Sister of Mercy, the Guam legislature presented Sister Monica with a special commendation for her lifetime commitment to prayer, education and service.
Sister Monica was an avid basketball and football fan, a talented cook, baker and seamstress. She always greeted everyone with a welcoming smile.
She is survived by the Sisters of Mercy; her siblings, Jose Perez and Agnes Carr; and several nieces and nephews.
Memorials may be sent to the Sisters of Mercy, 101 Mercy Dr., Belmont, N.C. 28012.
McLean Funeral Directors of Belmont is in charge of the arrangements.
— Catholic News Herald