We commend to your charity the soul of our beloved

Sr. Carole Riley Who departed this life on November 3, 2024

In the sixty-fifth year of her religious life

Age: 82 years, 5 months, 4 days

Sister Carole Riley entered the Sisters of Divine Providence on September 6, 1959, giving up a promising future as a classical pianist. Quiet, devout, and disciplined, Carole seemed more fit for the Carmelites, but she was inspired by Sister Clare Louise at St. Anne’s Elementary School, Castle Shannon, and often spoke of how Providence had guided her here. In a 2021 interview, she said that as a young novice, she set a goal for herself, “to work and be a saint who made a difference in people’s lives, bringing them closer to Christ and heaven.” During her 65 years of religious life, she succeeded in the goal of bringing thousands closer to Christ, even giving summer “Almost Heaven” retreats in West Virginia, where she spent most of her last years.

Like most of her novitiate classmates, Carole (then Sr. Mary Patrick) began her ministry teaching grade school students, but she quickly moved to teaching music in high school. Graduating from Duquesne University with a B.S. in Music Education, Carole began work on an M.S. in Music Education, followed by a Master’s in Music Performance and Theology, all from Duquesne. Beginning with teaching piano in the Music Department at Duquesne, Carole eventually became Chair of the Piano Department, Director of Graduate Studies in the Music School, and a full Professor. Carole also was a Distinguished Alumna and member of their Century Club.
But what drew Carole to religious life was not music, but spirituality. While she was teaching in the Music Department, she began taking classes with Dutch-born Spiritan Father Adrian van Kaam, founder of the Institute of Formative Spirituality at Duquesne. This internationally renowned program combined existential psychology with philosophy and sociology. Carole not only earned a Ph.D. in the program but also continued to teach classes in the program, while still teaching piano.

Spiritual direction was Carole’s gift. She became associated with the Cenacle Sisters, who founded a Retreat Cenacle near Duquesne. Carole was drawn to their retreat work and spiritual direction ministry. When the Cenacle closed in 1977, she helped the three remaining Sisters to relocate to Charleston, West Virginia, driving their donated truck for them. The relationship blossomed into a new ministry. She co-founded the Cenacle Retreat House, which became the ecumenical West Virginia Institute for Spiritualty, chartered in 1999.

During her years in Charleston, Carole directed hundreds of individual and group retreats. She traveled to Europe, eight African countries, Asia, Australia, New Guinea, New Zealand, the Philippines, and almost every state in the Union. She gave retreats for men’s religious communities, seminarians, and many women’s communities. Because she could not fulfil all the requests for her retreats, Carole made videos and CDs for Alba House/St. Paul’s. The ecumenical nature of WVIS meant few of Carole’s retreats or workshops were solely Roman Catholic. One of the things she loved about this ministry was that it fulfilled the mandate of the Gospel, “That all may be one.”

As the ministry grew, the Internet allowed her international reach through Zoom. Graduate credit was given through partnership with Indiana’s Graduate Theological Foundation. As Executive Director, Carole not only taught in the program, but trained many of the ministers she taught over the years at the Center. In a 2019 interview, Carole said, “We started out with the $40 people gave us that we used to open a bank account, and 20 years later, we’re still here with satellites in five states. These days, about 5,000 people come through the house in a year.”

The shy, quiet young woman who entered the community so many years ago used the gifts God had given her in ways that Providence continued to provide. Her music training led to workshops using music for healing. The discipline that was her gift as a musician prioritized her own spiritual life. She continued to crave solitude in the midst of the many tasks in her life. She cherished weekends when they had no retreats.
Carole Riley was truly a Woman of Providence. She worked hard, prayed always, and was generous with time and talent to the end of her life. In those last days when she chose solitude in her room at St. Joseph’s Center at The Commons, Carole finally had time for a silent retreat. While Carole is no longer with us, her spirit survives in the music teacher leading a children’s choir, in the recovered person addicted to alcohol or drugs, in the minister whose spirit was renewed after a retreat in Charleston.

Carole died on November 3, the 23rd anniversary of winning the Emil Penet National Religious Formation Conference Award for the impact on the U.S. through the mentoring model. In countries around the world, she will be mourned, but she came home to die, once again guided by Providence. May her memory be a blessing.

Birthday: May 31

Sr. Rita M. Yeasted, SFCC