Remembering Mary Madonna Ashton, CSJ '40
October 19, 2022
Cretin-Derham Hall remembers Mary Madonna Ashton, CSJ '40 who passed away peacefully on August 16, 2022 at Carondelet Village. She was a Derham Hall graduate, a convert to Catholicism, and a Sister of St. Joseph of Carondelet whose career as a public servant was groundbreaking on many levels.
She went from being the only non-Catholic in her class at Derham Hall to one of the only two religious to be honored for significantly impacting United State's history when she was named in 2016 as a National Women of History.
Ashton was the first woman, nun, and non-physician to serve as Minnesota's Commissioner of Health from 1983-91 where she took on big tobacco to outlaw smoking in public places and brought focus to the emerging HIV/AIDS epidemic in the 1980s.
Read below for a complete profile published by CDH in 2016 upon her being named a National Women of History Honoree.
May she rest in peace and may perpetual light shine upon her.
Funeral/Remembrance
Zoom Gathering to Remember for Mary Madonna Ashton, CSJ
Wednesday, November 8 - 6:30 pm
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ID: 651 696 2805 - Passcode: 651696
CV Broadcast: Channel 991
Funeral Celebration for Mary Madonna Ashton, CSJ
Our Lady of the Presentation Chapel
Friday, November 18 - 11am
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CV Broadcast: Channel 991
National Women of History Honoree Hails from Derham Hall
Excerpt from Traditions (Spring, 2016)
“God walks straight with crooked lines.”
Honored this year (2016) by the National Women’s History Project, Sr. Mary Madonna Ashton, CSJ ’40, joins a very distinguished list of women who have impacted United States History, including Susan B. Anthony, Georgia O’Keeffe, Hillary Rodham Clinton, Eleanor Roosevelt, Sally Ride, Beverly Sills and many more. As only the second religious woman to receive this distinction, she was honored in Washington, D.C. on March 19, coincidentally the Feast of St. Joseph.
Sr. Mary Madonna’s career in public and private service is one of impact. She served as president and CEO of St. Mary’s Hospital in Minneapolis, State Commissioner of Health under Governor Rudy Perpich, and founded St. Mary’s Health Clinics. Her career often followed a path that was neither predictable or in line with cultural norms, as often is with history-makers.
Crooked Lines
When then Minnesota Governor elect Rudy Perpich asked her to serve as Commissioner of Health. “There was a tremendous amount of opposition,” recalls Sr. Mary Madonna. She wasn’t a doctor. She was a woman and a nun! During consecutive terms she addressed smoking cessation and AIDS, becoming a highly respected and successful Commissioner of Health.
Her success with the landmark smoking legislation started a national movement. “We ended up outlawing smoking in public places, including hospitals, places of employment, and eventually, restaurants,” explains Sr. Mary Madonna. “As a result of the Department’s efforts, Northwest Airlines (now Delta) eliminated smoking on domestic flights and the Minnesota Twins baseball team stopped accepting tobacco ads at its stadium.”
She also addressed a growing AIDS epidemic. “When I took office, there were only four reported cases of AIDS in the state. I really didn’t know what AIDS was, but I learned along with the community. But as the epidemic took hold, and we came to realize the associated threat to community’s blood supply, we had to act and fast.” By the end of Sr. Mary Madonna’s term protections for the community’s blood supply were in place.
She later founded St. Mary’s Health Clinics for people without access to healthcare. She suggested that the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet use some funds from the sale of a previously sponsored health institution for this purpose. Sr. Mary Madonna used her impressive network of contacts to find a host of volunteer physicians, nurses and support personnel to staff what became St. Mary’s Health Clinics (SMHC). By the time she retired in 2000, SMHC had 11 clinics. Today, the clinics continue to operate. “Even after Affordable Care Act, there are still people without access to healthcare.”
The Derham Hall Fork in the Road
Her personal history stands as a testament that those very crooked lines started all the way back to her Derham Hall days.
As a teen, she was a strong-willed, very social young woman who ended up at Derham Hall literally against her will. “All my friends were going to Central, so of course, I wanted to go there,” explained Sr. Mary Madonna, who went by her given name, Alberta in high school. “But my mom, especially, did not want Central and so gave me the choice to go to Summit or Derham.” That decision proved to be life-changing.
As the only non-Catholic girl in a class of 25 at Derham Hall, she had a lot to learn. One teacher, Sr. Elise Marie, was always welcoming and gave her a friendly nudge to participate in things like saying the rosary, even though it was all new to her. She soon fell in love with Derham and excelled in both academics and extracurriculars and earned a full-ride scholarship to St. Catherine’s.
Sr. Mary Madonna continued, “The camaraderie of those people in my life those days was so important – it tied us to together and gave me that sense of friendship. We had a good time and supported each other. That is something that followed me through life.” She further points to the role of the Sisters as mentors on this crooked path. “Not only were they dedicated to teaching, they were fun and they made me feel comfortable.”
Even after graduating from Derham Hall, she maintained close ties to Sr. Marie Ursule, her former principal. As a junior in college, she wanted to explore Catholicism and sought this Sister’s counsel. She secretly studied Catholicism under the guidance of a priest friend, and soon she told her family that she wanted to convert. She became Catholic. That decision was easy compared to what lied ahead.
Several years later, however, when she felt called to become a nun, her family was dismayed. Despite the challenges of family disapproval, she entered the convent. The relationship with her mother was strained although she slowly came around and showed her love and support as the years went on. “I know my path was not always easy one to accept,” said Sr. Mary Madonna. “One of my most treasured moments, though, was on my 25th Anniversary of my vows when my mother wrote me a precious note: ‘At age 23, you knew better than I did what was right for you.”
“Let Opportunities Present Themselves”
Sr. Mary Madonna reflects on the many twists and turns that were typical of those critical years of Derham Hall, college and her career – and most recently landed her on the list of honorees by the National Women’s History Project.
She advises young men and women to be open to unexpected opportunities and to avoid boxing yourself into a package. “Take the job that interests you and do the best job you can.” She recalls her experience with the Sisters at Derham Hall and the many people in her career who encouraged and challenged her. “Let others see things in you that you don’t see yourself and you will discover opportunities to serve that you didn’t plan.”
