Sr. Maura Magner, born Maria Rose, was a native of Rathkeale, Co. Limerick. It was there she had her early education,and her secondary level education was in Foynes, Co. Limerick. Like many young Irish girls of her generation, after school she went to England to train as a nurse. She qualified as a Registered Nurse in Scarsdale Hospital in Chesterfield. Later she worked in London and in the Isle of Wight where she completed her midwifery training in 1954. Sr. Maura continued her nursing career in England, and later Canada, but the call to religious life was insistent.

She joined MMM in 1961. After her initial religious formation, Sr. Maura was assigned to Nigeria. For three years she worked as a Ward Sister in Ibadan Hospital. Her administrative skills were noted. In 1968 she was recalled to Drogheda and asked to help in the Hospital Laundry administration for just over a year.

Finally, Sr. Maura returned to nursing. Following Final Profession in 1970 Sr. Maura went to Uganda for three years as relief Matron in Kitovu Hospital. This time again, her overseas assignment came to an end by a call from home! Would she help with a Mission Awareness programme? Ever adaptable and good natured, Sr. Maura set off on her next assignment to the schools and parishes of Ireland.

Sr. Maura’s next adventure was training to be a Clinical Nurse Trainer. The studies were in Scotland and in our own Nursing School in Drogheda was the practical part. With these studies safely completed, Sr. Maura returned to her beloved Nigeria, this time to Ogoja, Ondo and finally Mafoluku. This time she was allowed to stay for more than 20 years before finally returning to Europe.

Initially she lived in England in Romiley, Cheshire, where she did Mission Awareness and was an active member of her parish. She also volunteered in a local nursing home. Later she moved to Solihull. Here she continued her work in Mission Awareness and found time to volunteer in a local hospital. She was also a member of St. Vincent de Paul Society and a Eucharistic minister.

Over the years Sr. Maura faced many health challenges, part of this involved an extended stay in Beaumont Hospital, Dublin. Throughout all her illness, she remained positive, cooperating fully with all that was asked of her and the treatment she was now receiving. There was a tranquillity and serenity about her, seeming to rise to all challenges, whether it was caring for a very ill patient in her nursing days or facing her own physical challenges.

Since she was a child, Sr. Maura has loved horses and horse racing. She found time to sit and watch the famous races and always offered an opinion on the horse that would win. But she never once placed a bet on the horse!

As her health needs increased, Sr. Maura finally returned to Ireland in 2013 and moved to Aras Mhuire for extra care in 2019 after the spell in Beaumont Hospital. Her final days were tranquil, and she died quietly and peacefully on September 8th, 2025.  She is buried in St. Peter’s Cemetery, Drogheda.