Rosemary Dobler, RSCJ

Birth: October 15, 1931
Profession: July 30, 1958
Death: January 4, 2024

Religious of the Sacred Heart Rosemary Dobler died on January 4, 2024, in Atherton, California. She was ninety-two years old and a religious for seventy-four years. Rosemary, or “Rody” as she was called, was born on October 15, 1931, in St. Joseph, Missouri, to William Oscar Dobler and Rose Beardsley Dobler. She was the fifth girl and the youngest of seven children.

Rody and her sisters attended St. Mary’s Parochial School in St. Joseph, Missouri, and then “Hilltop,” the Convent of the Sacred Heart, for high school, while her brothers attended the Christian Brothers school. She was strongly influenced by Mary Gray McNally, RSCJ, the mistress general at the time, who taught Rody about God’s personal love for her and had a large influence on Rody’s entrance into religious life.

After she graduated from high school, Rody attended Duchesne College in Omaha for one semester. Early on in her life, she was aware that she had a call to religious life and, in February 1950, she entered the Society of the Sacred Heart at Kenwood in Albany, New York, and made her first vows there on October 7, 1952.

Sister Dobler’s first assignment was teaching in the lower school at Hardey Preparatory School for Boys on Sheridan Road in Chicago (1952-1954). She also taught the elementary school girls at Sheridan Road. She then taught in the elementary school at Lake Forest, Illinois, for the next two years (1954-1956) and then returned to Hardey Preparatory in 1956 for two years. She loved directing the band of about eighteen boys that accompanied their games.

In 1958, Sister Dobler went to Rome to prepare for her final vows, which she made in July of that year. After her final profession, she was sent to the Convent of the Sacred Heart in St. Joseph, Missouri, where she taught in the high school and was dean of students until 1960. She then moved to Cincinnati where she taught in the middle school at Clifton during the academic year and spent the summers studying at Barat College in Lake Forest, Illinois, where she received her BA degree. Sister Dobler then returned to Chicago in 1965 to teach at Hardey Preparatory. During the summers, she studied music at DePaul University and received an MA degree in Music Education.

After Vatican Council II, Sister Dobler came into contact with the Charismatic Renewal Movement where she found new life. The emphasis placed on Jesus as personal savior was for her just what the Society of the Sacred Heart stood for. She became heavily involved in the Charismatic movement and felt a call to a different kind of ministry. In the late seventies, she retired from teaching, having spent almost thirty years in the classroom.

In 1978, Sister Dobler entered the Clinical Pastoral Education program at Foster McGaw Hospital in Maywood, Illinois, to learn how to become a chaplain. A year later, she did an internship in pastoral care at St. Luke’s Methodist Hospital in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and then took charge of the pastoral care department at St, Mary’s Hospital in East St. Louis, Missouri.

From 1982 to 1986, Sister Dobler served as chaplain at Providence Hospital in Everett, Washington. After four years, she moved to Seattle where she served at Seatoma Convalescent Center as Director of Pastoral Care. She thoroughly enjoyed her ministry and the opportunity of using her gift of listening to and giving comfort to those she served. After several years, Sister Dobler retired from her ministry at Seatoma Convalescent Center and continued to live in the community in Seattle with several other RSCJ.

As time went on, Sisters Dobler and Sandy Tuohy were the only two RSCJ left in the community in the city of Seattle. With them was Fred, their beloved dog, who kept them active and was a loving companion. When Sister Tuohy suffered an unfortunate accident, had to be hospitalized, and then spent several months in a care facility, it became clear that it was no longer possible to maintain the community house, and it was closed. Sister Dobler then joined the Oakwood Community in Atherton, California, where she quickly adjusted to her new life and enjoyed being able to take part in the life of the community, especially by song.

Over the last several months, Sister Dobler experienced more and more pain in her shoulder. Although many treatments were tried, she had little relief and eventually was not able to use her arm much at all. She moved into the Barat Community at Oakwood and on good days would sing along with the music on the TV. Her memory for the present was weak, but she totally remembered Fred, her beloved dog, her experiences teaching elementary students, and her dear friend, Sandy.

On the morning of January 4, 2024, Sister Dobler awoke having trouble breathing. She was placed on hospice that afternoon and within hours was making her final journey. Sister Tuohy and the staff visited with her before she died peacefully that evening.

A funeral mass will be celebrated for Sister Dobler on February 15, 2024, at 10:00 am in the Oakwood Chapel.

Memorial Contributions can be made to the Society of the Sacred Heart, United States-Canada, 4120 Forest Park Avenue, St. Louis, MO 63108.