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Death: August 3, 2012
Place of Death: Lake Oswego, OR USA
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Sister Miriam Philip (Henrietta Friedrich)
August 3, 2012
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Life Legacy
Sister Miriam Philip, (Henrietta Friedrich) died at the Marie-Rose Center at Mary's Woods in Lake Oswego on August 3, 2012, at age 98. She was a vowed member of the Sisters of the Holy Names for 78 years. The Mass of Christian Burial will be held on August 9, 2012, in the Chapel of the Holy Names.
Sister Miriam Philip was born the third of the six children of Francis Joseph and Henrietta Germann Friedrich in Astoria, where her father was a dentist. Two of her brothers became dentists and practiced in the Northwest. She and her siblings attended Star of the Sea parish school, and after graduating in 1932 she entered the Holy Names novitiate. She asked for the name Philip in honor of her little brother Philip, who had died at the age of nine in an accident the year before. Never very fond of the name Henrietta, she proudly kept her brother's name even after others returned to their baptismal names.
Sister came from a family that fostered the arts, and all her life she took delight in their various forms. She described her career in the community as a checkered one. Because she had studied music from the age of five, she started out as a music teacher of piano, harp, organ and singing, and she pioneered a program of music appreciation for students as young as eight or nine. After 12 years she moved to classroom teaching, beginning with the second grade and moving on to the seventh. Later she taught high school history, art and English, and worked in school libraries.
Not only did she work in a number of educational fields, but she covered much of the Pacific Northwest while doing so. In Washington she taught at Holy Names Academy and the Cathedral school in Seattle, and at St. Patrick's in Spokane. In Portland she served at Holy Redeemer, St. Francis, St. Thomas More and St. Mary's Academy. Sister traveled up and went down the 1-5 corridor and taught at schools in Salem, Eugene, Medford and over to St. Mary's Academy in The Dalles.
After receiving a bachelor's degree at Marylhurst College, Sister Miriam Philip nurtured her love of art by attending Reed College in the summers, where she studied calligraphy with Lloyd Reynolds. She also took courses at both Marylhurst and Holy Names College and spent a year at the Oakland School of Arts and Crafts. She used her talents in this field of art almost to the day she died, not only producing beautiful works, but in helping others with their work. A month long trip to Japan and East Asia forever influenced her work. She was especially proud of the mosaics at the Marylhurst Commons, which she helped to make.
Sister was a woman of exquisite taste: she loved good books, good clothes, good company and a good time. Creative and witty, her sometimes gruff exterior poorly concealed her loving and generous heart. Although her eyesight and her hearing dimmed over the last few years, her intelligence and sense of humor never did. She had an intimate relationship with God, which she shared with close friends, and looked forward to joining Him.
Sister Miriam Philip is survived by her nieces and nephews and the members of her religious community. Remembrances may be made to the Holy Names Sisters Foundation, P.O. Box 411, Marylhurst, OR 97036.
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