Sr. Mary Brigid Riordan, OSB, was born Patricia Ann on August 30, 1936, in St. Louis to Joseph and Irene Sivadie Riordan. She was the youngest of seven children, six girls and one boy, and recalled her early years as a time full of love.

“We did not have much money to spare but always had enough food to eat and enjoyed pleasures together,” she said. “I always enjoyed being at home with my family and felt loved. My father died when I was in the eighth grade, and it was a big loss for all of us.” She attended St. Ann Catholic School and graduated from Incarnate Word Academy. She was a shy girl who felt drawn to contemplative religious life during her high school years, but she took a position at the Standard Oil Company after graduation. She worked in the company’s credit office for almost seven years before she decided to answer her religious calling.

The Benedictine Sisters of Perpetual Adoration had two aspects that called to Patricia Ann: it was a contemplative order, and her sister, Joann, had entered the community in 1959. During a visit to the Clyde community in late 1962, she made the decision to enter. “I had a special experience at prayer in the Clyde chapel that weekend, and it felt like the right place to be,” she said. With the support of her family, she entered on February 10, 1963. She made her first monastic profession on September 18, 1965, taking the name Sister Brigid, and made final vows five years later. She had recently celebrated her 50th jubilee of first profession, which was a deep source of joy and gratitude for her.

Because Sr. Brigid had entered at the age of 26, people back then would have said she entered late in life. Her one profession companion was also “older” and the two helped each other through the bumps and hurdles of postulancy and novitiate. She remained conscious of being of service to other “older” postulants as they arrived—and of our older sisters, some of whom mentioned that Sr. Brigid was regularly responsive and sensitive to them.

During her years in community, Sr. Brigid served in many roles. She was a portress, worked in the printery, the kitchen, in bookkeeping, the correspondence department and maintenance. She was Sister Mary Jane’s subprioress in San Diego in 1987-1990.  “I have lived through many changes,” she said. “It is amazing to look back on where we were as a community when I entered and where we are today. There have been many struggles, sufferings, and joys.”

After she moved to Clyde in 2005, she checked concelebrant breads in the altar bread department. Sisters who worked with her commented on how punctual and aware of time she was, she was careful to balance work with prayer, other community activities and relationships. The latter were especially important to her. She would spend hours on Sunday afternoons talking with a sister friend about community issues and about their families. She frequently visited our elder sisters at Our Lady of Rickenbach.

In her 50 years of profession, she was a member of our communities in Tucson, Kansas City, San Diego, St. Louis, Clyde and Dayton and had a brief stay at Sand Springs. As several of the sisters said, Sr. Brigid was a ‘strong’ person, with a strength of character and strong opinions. The latter were shared frequently in quiet one-on-one conversations with listeners who were not left confused about what she wanted or thought. And although she preferred things a certain way, she also let herself be stretched. She spent 3 months at our ashram-monastery in Oklahoma when pipes were being replaced in St. Louis, and appreciated the teachings of speakers and retreat directors on the Eastern forms of prayer and understanding of God. Some years after that she spent almost a year at our small Dayton, WY, monastery.

A chance to attend the Benedictine Renewal Program in Rome in 2004 offered a wonderful opportunity to meet Benedictine sisters from around the world and visit places related to the history of the Benedictine order. After the program finished, she traveled to Maria Rickenbach in Switzerland, our founding monastery. “This was a very wonderful experience for me,” she said. “Just being there to walk around and pray with the sisters was enriching.”

The St. Louis Cardinals, had they known of Sister Brigid’s dedication, should have paid her for her enthusiasm, single-team loyalty and,   perhaps, prayer. For her, it was the Cardinals and none other.

Sr. Brigid especially valued the community’s monastic way of life and adoration of the Blessed Sacrament. “I appreciate our emphasis on the adoration aspect rather than on the perpetual aspect. The Church’s emphasis on the Eucharist as the communal uniting force in our lives gives our life importance and value,” she said. “We need a little bit of both, the quiet times of adoration and the giving times of service.” She lived this out with a quiet joy and generous willingness to help out in community.

Death came very suddenly for Sr. Brigid. She suffered a massive stroke the evening before her death on November 13, 2015, which occurred at the hospital with her prioress, Sr. Rita, praying with her. Because several family members died of strokes she had been aware of that danger for herself. 

Her funeral liturgy and burial at our Mt. Calvary Cemetery were on November 16, 2015.