Sister Annina (Mary Nina) Scharper

Sister Annina (Mary Nina) Scharper, age 99, died at Villa St. Michael in Emmitsburg, Maryland on March 4, 2024.  She was born on March 7, 1924 in Baltimore, Maryland, the youngest child of Marie Louise (Griffin) and William Albert Scharper. Before entering the Community, Sister Annina was a member of St. Ignatius Parish in Baltimore. She graduated from Seton High School in 1942 and entered the Daughters of Charity on February 1, 1943. She earned her Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree in 1949 from The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. and her Master of Science degree in Nursing Administration in 1960 from St. John’s University in Jamaica, New York.

Following initial formation, Sister Annina was missioned to teach at St. Ambrose School in Endicott, New York. She was then missioned to Providence Hospital in Washington, D. C. to study and begin her long ministry in nursing. She was a nurse supervisor at St. Mary’s Hospital in Troy, New York from 1950 to 1955 and on the School of Nursing faculty at St. Mary’s Hospital in Saginaw, Michigan until 1960. After obtaining her graduate degree, Sister Annina served as the Director of the following Schools of Nursing: DePaul Medical Center in Norfolk, Virginia; Sacred Heart Hospital in Pensacola, Florida; and St. Vincent’s Medical Center in Jacksonville, Florida. In 1969, she served in the Affiliate Education program at Seton Institute until 1973; then, she served as a nurse for two years at Catholic Charities, both in Baltimore. Sister Annina returned to Pensacola in 1975 to serve as Director of Nursing Service at Sacred Heart Hospital for the next six years. After serving at St. Agnes Hospital in Baltimore as an Education Instructor, Sister volunteered for the Mission Ad Gentes at age 60 and was sent to Taiwan. There, she served as a nursing educator at St. Mary’s Hospital in Taitung for the next ten years. She described these years “as a wonderful experience of multicultural living, not only in working with and caring for the Chinese people but also living with Sisters of various cultures in Community.” After her return in 1994, she served as a Parish Nurse at St. Joseph Parish in Martinsburg, West Virginia, Pastoral Care worker at DePaul Medical Center in Norfolk, and docent at the Shrine of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton in Emmitsburg. She had several other missions:  St. Ann’s Infant Home in Hyattsville, Maryland as Coordinator of Support Services; Mother and Child Ministry in Macon, Georgia as Executive Director; and St. Vincent’s Medical Center in Jacksonville as chaplain in Pastoral Care. She then came to Villa St. Michael in 2004 for the Ministry of Prayer, a ministry she held until her death.

Sister Annina was preceded in death by her parents and all eight siblings:  Louise (Sister Dolores, D. C.), Ann Pape, William, Phil, Fred, Earl, Henry and Griffin Scharper. She is survived by numerous nieces and nephews, friends, and her Sisters in Community.

A Wake Service will be held on Friday, March 8 at 4:00 pm in the Villa Chapel in Emmitsburg. The Mass of Christian Burial will be at 11:00 am on Saturday, March 9 in the Basilica of the National Shrine of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton. Burial will follow in the St. Joseph Cemetery on the grounds.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made in Sister Annina’s name to the Daughters of Charity, 4330 Olive Street, Saint Louis, Missouri 63108.