Sister Joan Noreen OLME, formerly known as Mary Ann Testa, 83, of Douglassville, PA passed away on Friday, January 7, 2022, at the Reading Hospital. Born in South Philadelphia, PA, she was the daughter of the late John S. and Nora H. (McBrearty) Testa.
She graduated in 1956 from Little Flower Catholic High School for Girls in Philadelphia. Her spiritual journey began when she entered the Sisters of St. Joseph of Chestnut Hill, PA, where she received a BS in Education and a BS in Music Education. After multiple teaching assignments, she was then appointed the Assistant Director of the National Shrine Basilica of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C. from 1973 – 1978. She continued her education and also received her MA in Formative Spirituality and an MA in Religious Studies/Sacred Scripture
Sister Joan founded Our Lady’s Missionaries of the Eucharist in the Diocese of Arlington, VA in 1978. OLME has grown and established spiritual formations for the laity, with lay communities for men and women in the Archdioceses of Philadelphia, PA and Newark, NJ and the Dioceses of Arlington, VA and Allentown, PA. OLME is currently based in Birdsboro, PA.
She was a member of the Immaculate Conception BVM RC Church in Douglassville, PA. She has been a numerous presenter of the Eucharistic Journey Series for the EWTN network.
Her many accomplishments and her life’s work has been dedicated to the service and the teachings of Jesus Christ.
Surviving Sister Joan are her siblings: Catherine L. Desiderio, widow of Frank, Nora C. Dwyer, widow of James, John L. Testa, husband of Jane, Amy Fasti Meier (deceased, Joseph) wife of Fred, James J. Testa, Louis P. Testa, and Francis P. Testa, husband of Carol. Also survived by an ever-growing loving and caring family.
A viewing will be on Friday, January 14, 2022 from 6:00pm-8:00pm at the Immaculate Conception BVM RC Church, 905 Chestnut St. Douglassville (Union Twp.), PA 19518. A Mass of Christian Burial will be on Saturday, January 15, 2022 at the Immaculate Conception BVM RC Church, promptly at 10:00am. There will be a viewing Saturday morning prior to mass from 8:30am-10:00am. Burial will be private.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Little Flower Catholic High School for Girls, 1000 West Lycoming Street Philadelphia, PA 19140, in Memory of Sister Joan Noreen, OLME.