Sr. Marianne Nehus, CHM

Sister Marianne Nehus, CHM, 67, died Sunday, May 10, 2020, at Bishop Drumm Care Center in Johnston, IA.  A private Rosary and memorial service will take place at the Humility of Mary Center Magnificat Chapel, Davenport, IA, prior to burial in Mt. Calvary Cemetery.  A memorial Mass will be scheduled when pandemic restrictions are lifted.

Mary Kathleen Nehus was born December 23, 1952, in Honolulu, HI, to George and Elizabeth Byers Nehus. Having a strong calling to be a nun that manifested in junior high school, she entered a Franciscan order, the Servants of the Holy Infancy of Jesus, in 1971, and professed vows in 1974.  Later, in 1987, she transferred to the Congregation of the Humility of Mary (CHM).

Sister’s education included: AS Union College, Cranford, NJ; RN Nursing, Muhlenberg Hospital, Plainfield, NJ; BSN Nursing, Teikyo Marycrest University, Davenport, IA.

Sister Marianne served as a nurse at Villa Maria, NJ, beginning as an aide and rising to be head nurse, and also worked as an administrative intern at the McCutchen Nursing home in N Plainfield, NJ, and as a staff nurse in the Children Specialized Hospital in Mountainside, NJ.  After transferring to the CHM, she served in Davenport as a nurse and administrator at Mercy Hospital, a Registered Nurse at Genesis Visiting Nurse Association and Genesis Hospital, and as the Extension Program Coordinator for the Congregation of the Humility of Mary.  Recently, she served as the computer assistant for the CHMs at the Bishop Drumm Retirement Center.  She also was creative in her photography and holiday-themed name cards for the sisters’ doors.

Sister was involved for many years with the Animal Aid Humane Society, eventually becoming the executive director of the AAHS shelter in Moline, IL. She was honored by Governor Vilsack for her service on the Disabilities Policy Council in 2006.

Survivors include her sisters, Pat Dexter, Great Falls, MT, Jeanne Champion (Archie) Seattle, WA and Helen McCann (Glenn) Laurel, MT, brothers Bob Nehus (Beth) Homer, Alaska, John Nehus (Olivia) Port Orchard, WA and Mike Nehus (Kathy), Spokane, WA, and the sisters and associates of her religious community.  She was preceded in death by her parents, her stepmother, Gladine Nehus and aunt, Sister Mary John Byers, CHM.

Memorials may be made to the Congregation of the Humility of Mary