Obituaries

Obituary | Sr. Marie Ambrose Peters, SSND

Sr. Peters

Sister Marie Ambrose Peters, a retired educator, died May 23 at Anna House at The Sarah Community in Bridgeton at age 89.

Born Bernice Marie Peters in Leopold, Missouri, she attended Leopold Public Elementary School and begged her parents to allow her to attend St. Mary High School in Cape Girardeau, Missouri. That’s where she met the School Sisters of Notre Dame. She entered the candidature at Sancta Maria in Ripa in 1951, was received into the novitiate in 1953 and made profession of first vows in 1954 and final vows in 1960.

Sister Marie Ambrose received a bachelor’s degree in history from the former Notre Dame College in St Louis in 1956 and a master’s degree in history from St. Louis University in 1967.

Sister Marie Ambrose taught for 10 years at Holy Family School in Freeburg, Missouri; Notre Dame High School in St. Louis; and Notre Dame High School in Quincy, Illinois. She was a principal for 27 years at Immaculate Heart of Mary School in St. Louis; Duchesne High School in St. Charles; and Notre Dame Elementary School in St. Louis.

She was a tutor in the Notre Dame Tutorial Center at Ripa for seven years and a teacher in the Notre Dame Learning Center for two years. She was the building coordinator for Maria Center on the Sancta Maria in Ripa campus for 11 years. Sister Marie Ambrose performed volunteer service at Sancta Maria in Ripa for five years. In 2010, she was missioned to Veronica House at The Sarah Community, and then to Anna House in 2011.

In 1987, Sister Marie Ambrose was honored at the National Catholic Educational Association convention as one of the 40 outstanding Catholic educators in the United States. During her years at Notre Dame Elementary, she secured support from the local business community for scholarships for financially needy students. The Sister Marie Ambrose Peters Scholarship Fund was established in her name.

A burial service was held outside at Sancta Maria in Ripa on May 29. Survivors include two brothers, Theodore and Mark Peters of Marble Hill, Missouri, and a sister, Bonnie Diebold of Dresden, Tennessee. A memorial Mass will be celebrated at a later date.