Sr. Freda Burns, RDC (formerly known as Sr. Mary Victorian), a member of the Sisters of the Divine Compassion, died peacefully on February 28, 2011 at Good Counsel Convent in White Plains. Sister Freda was born in New York on January 7, 1917 the daughter of Fred and Jessie (Goodspeed) Burns. She entered the Sisters of the Divine Compassion in 1940 and professed her final vows in 1948. Sister Freda attended Good Counsel College and graduated with a degree in English. She continued her studies at Fordham University and received the M.A. in English. Sister pursued additional advanced work at St. John's University, Teachers College Columbia University and Colgate University.
Sister taught at St. Mary's School in Katonah and completed her teaching career at Kennedy Catholic High School in Somers, New York. Sister Susan Merritt, President of the Sisters of the Divine Compassion commented, "Sister Freda was her own woman, clear about who she was and what she was about. An "early adopter", she was using computers long before her peers, and teaching those much younger. She never relinquished her extraordinarily clever and insightful sense of humor." Sister is survived by her Sisters of the Divine Compassion, and her niece, Maureen Stano.
