Sister Christine Swords, 88, known in religion as Sr. Marie Christine, beloved member of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Springfield, died at Bethany Health Care Center in Framingham, Mass. on August 20, 2017. Born in Springfield, Mass., she was the daughter of Raymond L. and Josephine (Noonan) Swords.
Sister Christine entered the Sisters of St. Joseph of Springfield from Holy Family Parish, Springfield in 1950. She graduated from Cathedral High School, Springfield. Sister Christine earned a B.A. degree from the College of Our Lady of the Elms, Chicopee and an M.A. in Spanish from Boston College.
Sister spent many years teaching Spanish at Cathedral High School in Springfield. In addition, she served as Director of Novices and also served on the Executive Board/Leadership Team of the Sisters of St. Joseph. After her retirement from Cathedral High School in 1994, Sister worked in the Development Office of the Sisters of St. Joseph.
In addition to her Sisters in community, Sr. Christine is survived by her sister Margaret Swords of East Longmeadow and several generations of loving nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her parents and her siblings, Fr. Raymond Swords, John Swords and Mary Swords.
All services for Sr. Christine will take place in St. Joseph Chapel at Mont Marie on Wednesday, August 23, 2017. She will be waked from 9:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. with a prayer service at 10:00 a.m. The Liturgy of Christian Burial will follow at 11:00 a.m. Burial will be in Mont Marie Cemetery.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Sisters of St. Joseph, 577 Carew St., Springfield, MA 01104.