Sister Anne Doherty, S.P., (May 6, 1928 – February 3, 2013) was an American

religious sister A religious sister (abbreviated: Sr.) in the Catholic Church is a woman who has taken public vows in a religious institute dedicated to apostolic works, as distinguished from a nun who lives a cloistered monastic life dedicated to prayer and ...

, educator, professor and psychologist. She served as the

Superior General A superior general or general superior is the leader or head of an 'order' of religious persons (nuns, priests, friars, etc) or, in other words, of a 'religious institute' in the Catholic Church, and in some other Christian denominations. The super ...

of the

Sisters of Providence of Saint Mary-of-the-Woods The Sisters of Providence of Saint Mary-of-the-Woods are an Consecrated life (Catholic Church), apostolic congregation of Roman Catholic Church, Catholic women founded by Saint Theodore Guerin, Theodora Guerin (known colloquially as Saint Mo ...

, Indiana, from 1981–1986. During her term, the Constitutions of the Sisters of Providence gained papal

approbation Approbation may refer to: * Approbation (Catholic canon law), an act in the Catholic Church by which a bishop or other legitimate superior grants to an ecclesiastic the actual exercise of his ministry * Approbation (Germany), the process of grant ...

Early life

She was born Teresa Anne Doherty in

Indianapolis, Indiana Indianapolis ( ), colloquially known as Indy, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Indiana, most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana, Marion ...

, to parents Patrick and Hannah Byrne Doherty and attended St. Philip Neri Parish. She entered the congregation on January 9, 1946, and was professed as a full Sister of Providence on August 15, 1953, with the religious name Sister Dennis. Doherty graduated with a bachelor's degree from

Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College (SMWC) is a private Roman Catholic liberal arts college in Saint Mary-of-the-Woods, Indiana, US. Originally a college exclusively for women, it is now coeducational. It is the oldest Catholic college in Indiana ...

in 1963 and later went to

Catholic University of America The Catholic University of America (CUA) is a private Catholic research university in Washington, D.C., United States. It is one of two pontifical universities of the Catholic Church in the United States – the only one that is not primarily a ...

to earn a master's degree in psychology (1966) and a doctorate in clinical psychology and counseling (1969).

Ministry

Doherty spent time ministering as an elementary educator in

Indiana Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...

and

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

and then went on to teach at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College, Weston School of Theology and

Martin University Martin University (originally Martin Center College) is a private college in Indianapolis, Indiana. It was founded by Fr Boniface Hardin, OSB and Jane Edward Schilling, CSJ in 1977 to serve low-income, minority, and adult learners. It is the onl ...

. She also practiced psychology at several clinics in

Vigo County, Indiana Vigo County ( ) is a county on the western border of the U.S. state of Indiana. According to the 2020 United States census, it had a population of 106,153. Its county seat is Terre Haute. Vigo County is included in the Terre Haute metropo ...

, including a stint as director of Clinical Services at Katherine Hamilton Center from 1972–1979. Her clinical interests included families with children as well as treatment of sexual abuse victims and offenders. She also directed attention toward the rural poor, leading to her testifying before a 1977 Congressional Hearing on Aging regarding the needs of elderly in rural areas. Doherty began her term as general superior in 1981. She coordinated the building of Karcher Hall at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods and began renovation of the Church of the Immaculate Conception (Saint Mary-of-the-Woods, Indiana). She also oversaw the sale of the Immaculata College property in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

After her term, Doherty worked as a

tribunal A tribunal, generally, is any person or institution with authority to judge, adjudicate on, or determine claims or disputes—whether or not it is called a tribunal in its title. For example, an advocate who appears before a court with a singl ...

advocate in the

Diocese of Monterey The Diocese of Monterey in California () is an ecclesiastical territory or diocese, of the Latin Church of the Catholic Church in the central coast region of California. It comprises Monterey, San Benito, San Luis Obispo and Santa Cruz counties. ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

, and the Diocese of Gary, Indiana. In 1984, Doherty was presented the President's Award from the

Ancient Order of Hibernians The Ancient Order of Hibernians (AOH; ) is an Irish Catholic fraternal organization. Members must be male, Catholic, and either born in Ireland or of Irish descent. Its largest membership is in the United States, where it was founded in New Yo ...

in Indianapolis for exemplifying Catholicism and Irish heritage. During her last years, Doherty lived with

Alzheimer's disease Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease and the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in remembering recent events. As the disease advances, symptoms can include problems wit ...

. She died at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods on February 3, 2013, and is buried in the Sisters of Providence Convent Cemetery.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Doherty, Anne 1928 births 2013 deaths Sisters of Providence of Saint Mary-of-the-Woods 20th-century American Roman Catholic nuns 21st-century American Roman Catholic nuns