Young Marion Blackwell was destined for a notable life. Born in 1887 to Thomas and Julia (Britt) Blackwell in Milwaukee, she was just 6 years old when she began to study music with her oldest sister, Alice. After graduating from St. John’s Academy, Milwaukee, she entered the novitiate and made profession as Sister Edward Blackwell, OP, in 1907.
She received advanced degrees in music and music theory from the American Conservatory, Chicago. She was awarded the American scholarship for three-year study in Rome under Ottorino Respeghi in orchestration and composition of symphonies. Edward attended the Paris Conservatory and also studied under Nadia Boulanger and Igor Stravinsky. Because of her personal friendship with both, she was invited to many great concerts in Paris. Nadia visited her at Sinsinawa Mound and was asked to teach our Sister musicians. Nadia then taught for three summers at the Mound and one year at Edgewood. One of Edward’s most satisfying accomplishments in her lifetime was her influence in assisting Nadia in her return to the Catholic Church after a 35-year lapse.
Edward taught music for 40 years. Her missions included St. Bernard, Peoria, IL; Holy Trinity, Bloomington, IL; St. Brendan, Chicago; Rosary College, River Forest, IL; Corpus Christi, New York, NY; Faith, Hope, and Charity, Winnetka, IL; and Edgewood, Madison, WI.
Sisters who had Edward as a teacher were captivated and absorbed by her wealth of knowledge and her ability to convey and share her music and art gifts with them. She had a great desire to pass on her passion for cultural arts to her students. She was very sensitive to interruptions during her classes. Her students were expected to respond with the same graces she exhibited. Before each class, students were encouraged to “clean your mouth” (take out gum, etc.) and “uncross your limbs” (swinging of limbs was also prohibited). Those who experienced Edward were captivated, absorbed, and grateful for her many gifts.
After coming to the Mound in 1950, Edward traveled extensively giving fine arts lectures primarily in high schools staffed by our Sisters. When she reluctantly moved to St. Dominic Villa, Dubuque, IA, in 1986, she would often pack up her belongings (her suitcase was never unpacked), put them on a wheelchair, and wait at the back door for someone to take her back to the Mound as she desired to spend her final days there. She took her case to the highest authority to be granted permission to move back to Sinsinawa someday. Edward lived to be 100. She died Jan. 7, 1987, at the Villa.
Edward made gold poetry books for many of her friends. After her passing, one friend found the following words written in her handwriting on the inside cover: “We face death with none of our business accomplished, for living is distraction disguised as important actions.”
