Age 89
Sister Rosemary Floersch was born in Omaha, Nebraska, on April 1, 1934, to parents Paul and Catherine (Ring) Floersch. She was the eldest of four children. Sister Rosemary attended Holy Name Grade School and Saint Mary High School, both in Omaha. Three months after high school, she entered the Sisters of Mercy in 1952.
Sister Rosemary graduated from College of Saint Mary with a bachelor’s degree in elementary education. She earned her master’s degree in counseling and guidance from the College of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minnesota. She taught fifth through eighth grades for 10 years in Omaha Catholic grade schools.
In 1966, Sister Rosemary arrived at the steps of Mercy High School in Omaha where she stayed for more than 35 years taking on debate, speech, history and English. By an overwhelming series of votes of speech and debate coaches from across the state, Sister Rosemary received the Nebraska South Coach of the Year Award four times (1998, 2000, 2001 and 2002).
Years later, Sister Rosemary commented, “Teaching has always been somewhat of a passion for me. When others were looking for a day off, I wanted school.” Her former students thought highly of her. One of her former students recalled, “Sister Rosemary not only taught us how to develop our critical thinking skills for debate, she spent time making sure we did well on other things. She even taught me how to pump gas.”
After 46 years of classroom teaching, Sister Rosemary started tutoring Sudanese children a few days a week. She soon realized that these refugee families needed more than just tutoring. She expanded her ministry by providing more life services, such as assisting with housing needs and shopping for groceries. As the founder and director of the Sudanese Outreach Project, Sister Rosemary quickly filled her days by following the “persistent urging from God to work with the poor.”
Sister Rosemary entered eternal life on May 16, 2023.