Sr. Marilyn Gottemoeller RSM

Sister Marilyn Gottemoeller 88, (formerly Sister Mary Fatima) transitioned very peacefully to her heavenly home Thanksgiving evening (11/27) at the Sisters of Mercy St. Bernardine Home, Fremont. A native of Cleveland, she attended her first three years of high school at Our Lady of the Pines Aspirant school in Fremont, before beginning her novitiate studies in Cincinnati to become a Sister of Mercy.

From the very beginning she found joy in her ministries. Her first year teaching (5th grade, St. Ann, Fremont) she endeared herself to the 8th grade girls who waited for her and some other Sisters after Thursday night Holy Hour for snowball encounters on the school playground.

Soon she pursued a Masters degree in Latin from Marquette University which moved her to teaching high school (McAuley H.S., Toledo.) During this time, she received a 2nd Masters in Religious Studies which took her to the first of several diocesan positions.

At the time of professing her perpetual vows she received a ring symbolizing her commitment and inscribed with a motto personally chosen by each Sister. Sister Marilyn chose “All Forever” saying “It clearly speaks of God’s commitment to me and my commitment to God.”

At the age of 39, she was elected to the Mercy Leadership Team for the Cincinnati Province for a six year term. After this she was given the opportunity of a yearlong sabbatical which found her living and working with the Navajo people on a reservation and later with indigenous people in Mexico and Nicaragua.

These experiences became so much a part of her life that she pursued ministries which focus on the Sisters of Mercy Critical Concerns: Care of the Earth: Immigration; Non-Violence; Racism: and Women.

After much discernment she accepted appointments from the Bishop of Toledo as Pastoral Associate at St. Joseph Parish, Maumee, and, later, Blessed Sacrament Parish, Toledo. When Mount Camel Parish in Bono, Ohio, was left without a pastor, the Bishop asked Marilyn to assume the position of Pastoral Leader there. She became one of the few women to hold such a position.

In 2002 she was again elected to the Leadership Team of the Sisters of Mercy. When her term was over, she worked with Mercy Associates and in the Community Ministry Office in St. Louis for 7 years.

All of these experiences she took with her to St. Bernardine’s when she retired there four years ago. In spite of all her work experiences, she did take time for fun and travel. She loved tenting, jogging, backpacking, swimming and camping. She was not one to miss a party. And at those parties, and any gathering, her laugh was identifiable and contagious. She loved get togethers.

Sister Marilyn was preceded in death by her parents, Bertha (Bruns) & Charles A. Gottemoeller.

Her three sisters survive her: Sister of Mercy, Sister Doris Gottemoeller; Martha (David) Smydra, Rochester Hills, Michigan and Elizabeth (Dennis) Bartelme, Philadelphia along with many nieces and nephews and her Mercy Community.

There will be a 3:00pm Welcoming Service on Monday, December 8, 2025 at St. Bernardine Home, Fremont, Ohio with visitation until 7 pm. The funeral liturgy will be Tuesday, December 9, 2025, at 11:00 a.m. with burial to follow at Our Lady of the Pines Cemetery.

The Welcome Service, Funeral Mass and Burial will be livestreamed via her obituary on the funeral home's webpage. Arrangements are under the care of Herman - Karlovetz Funeral Home & Crematory, Fremont. Online condolences may be expressed at www.hermanfh.com