Ellen Elizabeth McGinn was born in Baltimore, Maryland, Oct. 27, 1886. Her father was from Ireland; her mother, from Baltimore. She entered on Jan.15, 1910, in spite of strong opposition of her family, who did not write to her till near the end of her life. She was invested on Aug. 27, 1910 and professed as Sister M. Bertilla on Jan. 13, 1912. Perpetual vows were made on Jan. 6, 1921.

Sister was cheerful, kind, and very prayerful. She spent hours in chapel on her knees and prayed with extended arms for long periods of time. She was zealous for official adoration and often took the early morning hours immediately preceding the long morning services in chapel. She was greatly devoted to our Blessed Mother and her Rosary.

For about twenty years Sister mended, plaited and formed the linen collariums for the community, and was an expert at the work. She was solicitous about having the Sisters look neat and having their collariums fitted properly. Sister was also a good seamstress, very neat about her own person and everything else. In later years she became hard of hearing and would try to read lips, but communication was difficult. 

Early in December, 1938 she became seriously ill and underwent surgery at the Maryville hospital. She was doing nicely and expected to come home on the 16th, but suffered a coronary embolism in the early morning and died within half an hour - fully conscious and having received the last anointing by Father Gregory Huegle, then the chaplain at the St. Francis Hospital. It was the 11th anniversary of Father Lukas' death. Sister was fifty-two years old.