(1935-2025)

As the oldest daughter in a family of fourteen, Rita Brunett learned responsibility at a very early age. And, as a girl sandwiched in the middle of four boys and trying to keep up with them, she earned a reputation for being more adventurous than most of her school friends. Both of these factors, responsibility and adventurousness, came to bear often in her later life as a religious.

Rita was born August 10, 1935, on Detroit’s east side to Raymond and Cecilia (Gill) Brunett. Eventually, the family grew to encompass six boys and eight girls; besides Rita, who was the third child, there were Raymond, Alex, Michael, Anne, William, Grace, John, Rose, Jean, Mary, Paul, Ruth, and Margaret.

Anne, Rose, and Mary all followed Rita into the Congregation, although each of the three ended up leaving, while Alex entered the priesthood and eventually rose to become Archbishop of Seattle, Washington.

Raymond was a plumber who worked hard to provide for his family and both he and Cecilia worked hard on the domestic front. According to Rita’s autobiography:

We were a happy family although often very poor. … We did not want for anything that was important. From both my parents we learned a good work ethic. My father would always tell us to do “eight hours of work for eight hours of pay.” My mother believed that there was a place for everything and everything should be in its place (try to follow that with six kids under the age of seven!). One of the other important lessons we learned was that it was no shame to be poor as long as we were clean and our clothes were neatly patched. My mother spent many hours darning socks and making and repairing clothing for us. My father was unusual for his day in that he had a large hand in raising the children. In a time when the man was supposed to work and the wife take care of the children and home, my father changed diapers, cooked meals, and did whatever work needed to be done.

Read more about Sister Rita (PDF)

 

Memorial gifts may be made to Adrian Dominican Sisters, 1257 East Siena Heights Drive, Adrian, MI, 49221. 

 

Vigil and Funeral Recordings

Recording of Sister Rita's Vigil Service - After clicking the link, download the recording by right-clicking on the video choosing "Save video as." Worship Aid (PDF)

Recording of Sister Rita's Funeral Mass - After clicking the link, download the recording by right-clicking on the video choosing "Save video as." Worship Aid (PDF)

 

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