Mary Martha Karlin

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Sister Mary Martha Karlin, CSA, baptized Rita Anarda, died peacefully July 6, 2021, at Nazareth Center, Fond du Lac, Wisconsin.

Rita was born March 26, 1926, in Severin, Kansas, the daughter of Leo Karlin and Martha Etzel Karlin.  She grew up in a farm family of fifteen, 10 boys and five girls. Rita entered St. Agnes Convent in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, in 1945 and graduated from St. Agnes High School, Fond du Lac, in 1947. She made her profession of vows in the Congregation of Sisters of St. Agnes as Sister Mary Martha on August 15, 1948.

While in high school, Sister Mary Martha worked as a nurse’s aide at a local hospital. This experience influenced her desire to become a nurse.  After one year at Marian College, Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, Sister transferred to St. Agnes School of Nursing, Fond du Lac, in 1948 and graduated as a licensed registered nurse in 1951. She earned her B.S. in Nursing from Marian College in 1956.  She served as a nurse at St. Agnes Hospital, Fond du Lac, Wisconsin; St. Anthony’s Hospital, Hays, Kansas; and Nazareth Heights, Fond du Lac, Wisconsin.  She also was a nursing instructor at St. Agnes School of Nursing, Fond du Lac, Wisconsin. In 1972, Sister received a Nursing Home Administration License from the Fox Valley Technical Institute of Appleton, Wisconsin. She then became Director of Nursing in hospitals and nursing homes in Wisconsin and Kansas. She completed her years in hospital ministry as a chaplain at St. Anthony’s Hospital in Hays, Kansas, from 1988-1992. 

After retiring from healthcare, Sister Mary Martha remained in Hays, Kansas, to engage in CSA community service: pre-retirement coordinator for the CSA sisters at St. Joseph Convent in Hays and onsite coordinator for the CSA Associates in Hays. Sister was also active in the local Hays community as a hospice volunteer, a volunteer for the Community Assistance Center, and a board member for the Mary Elizabeth Maternity Home. In 2004, Sister Mary Martha moved to Nazareth Court and Center where she resided until the time of her death.

Sister Mary Martha was preceded in death by her parents Leo and Martha Karlin; her brothers Norman and Gerard (infants), and Lawrence, Leroy, Herbert, Frederick, Felix, and Peter; and her sisters Leocadia Dreiling, Martha Biegler, and Sister Leonissa Karlin, CSA.

She is survived by her brothers John Karlin, Tom (Laura) Karlin, and her sister Betty Pfeifer; her sisters-in-law Nadine (+Frederick) Karlin, Arlene (+Leroy) Karlin, Sharon (+Lawrence) Karlin, and the Sisters of St. Agnes, with whom she lived, prayed, and ministered.

Visitation will be held at Nazareth Court and Center, 375 Gillett Street, Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, from 9:00-11:00 a.m. and from 12:00 -1:30 p.m. on Tuesday, July 13, 2021.  

A prayer service will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Tuesday, July 13, 2021, in the Nazareth Center Chapel. Please check in for the Visitation and Prayer Service at the 375 Gillett Street entrance only. 

The Mass of Christian Burial for Sister Mary Martha will be held on Tuesday, July 13, 2021, at 2:00 p.m. in St. Francis Home Chapel, 33 Everett Street, Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, with Father Kenneth Smits, Capuchin, presiding.  Burial will follow at St. Joseph Springs Cemetery, Fond du Lac, Wisconsin.

Memorials may be directed to the CSA Mission Advancement Office, 320 County Road K, Fond du Lac, WI 54937.

The Sisters of St. Agnes are grateful to the nurses and staff of Nazareth Court and Center and Hospice Hope for their care of Sister Mary Martha in her final years.

Zacherl Funeral Home is serving the Congregation of Sisters of St. Agnes.