Sister Pat Murphy, devoted immigrant advocate, dies at 96
Sister Pat Murphy, while described as a “tiny and gentle” woman, wasn’t concerned about whom she had to speak up to.
As formidable advocates for immigrants and pioneers of Chicago’s sanctuary movement, Sister Pat and her longtime companion, Sister JoAnn Persch, marched in protests, met and prayed with countless immigrant detainees at jails and deportation centers, and pushed for legislation aimed at reforming the immigration system.
“She would speak truth to power,” Persch said. “And people would be surprised by how strong she was in that regard…she was very tiny and gentle.”
The two Sisters of Mercy lived together for the past roughly 40 years throughout Chicago and the suburbs, moving between houses, apartments and shelters, and sometimes residing with immigrants and refugees who had newly arrived to the area.
They had known each other for about 65 years, maintaining their passion for justice and continuing to serve the community until earlier this year.
Sister Pat died July 21 beside her family and Sisters of Mercy. She was 96.
“It was an amazing gift for me to walk with her, someone that had the same passion that I did, someone who was a risk taker,” said Persch, 91.
Sister Pat and Persch founded several community and housing organizations for migrants, including Su Casa in Back of the Yards, the Interfaith Community for Detained Immigrants and most recently Catherine’s Caring Cause.
They started the latest nonprofit group after they were called on by the Archdiocese of Chicago and a sanctuary working group to strategize respectful ways to house the buses of asylum seekers sent to Chicago by the Texas Gov. Greg Abbott in August 2022.
Persch said Sister Pat was “very troubled” by the Trump administration’s approach on immigration enforcement, which has targeted Chicago and involved Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents raiding homes and workplaces.
“What could happen to these people is extremely important,” Sister Pat was quoted as saying in the Chicago Tribune this year. “[President Donald Trump’s] words … the way he talks about immigrants. It’s an act of disrespect. Complete disrespect.”
Sister Pat was born April 20, 1929, in Chicago to Frank and Thelma Murphy, and grew up with four siblings.
After graduating from St. Patrick's High School in Des Plaines in 1947, Sister Pat entered the Sisters of Mercy novitiate at the same location. She earned a bachelor's degree at St. Xavier University and a master's degree at Mundelein College, which merged with Loyola University Chicago. She taught at Catholic schools in Chicago and later in Wisconsin, where she met Persch in 1960.
Sister Pat volunteered for missionary work in Peru, staying there for several years until returning to Chicago in 1969.
Sister Pat and Persch championed several changes in the immigration system over the years, among them a state law they helped pass in 2008 that allowed religious workers to visit detainees in county jails.
Then for 12 years, the two set up a weekly visit to the McHenry County Jail to speak with detainees and pray with them. They prayed with detainees at other jails and deportation centers in Kankakee County, Broadview and Wisconsin.
Persch said they used to have a “wonderful relationship” with ICE in Chicago and in Washington, D.C., during previous administrations.
“We could meet with them, we could talk about how to make things better,” Persch said. “And now it’s cruel, inhumane, certainly not part of the faith that I’m motivated by to help our neighbor — that’s my faith, not to try to destroy them.”
Sister Pat left a lasting impact on countless lives, Persch added. She even received a text recently from Sister Pat’s hospice nurse about the strong influence Sister Pat made on her life despite knowing her for maybe two weeks.
“She would put herself out for whoever needed help… Her gift was that she knew how to be present to each person, [even] whether it was a 2 year old,” Persch said, recalling a recent moment when Sister Pat chit-chatted with a young child at her hospice bed.
“She had that gift, and she made people feel very special when she’d be talking to them.”
Sister Pat is survived by her brother, Michael, and several nieces, nephews, grandnieces and grandnephews.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas or to Catherine’s Caring Cause.
A visitation is planned for Wednesday, from 3:30 to 8 p.m., at Mercy Hall, 10044 S. Central Park Ave. A funeral Mass will be 10:30 a.m. Thursday at Mercy Chapel.