MARLBOROUGH, Mass. – St. Anne Sister Ernestine Barrett, 95, formerly known as Sister Mary Edward, died Nov. 1 at Marie Esther Health Center. She was in the 74th year of religious life.
Born in Saylesville, she was the daughter of the late Ferdinand and Angeline (Dufresne) Barrette. She completed her elementary education at the former St. Matthew School in Central Falls, and graduated from St. Anne Academy, Marlborough. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Anna Maria College, Paxton, Mass., and a Master of Arts degree from Boston College, Chestnut Hill, Mass. She was also a licensed practical nurse.
In 1935, she entered the novitiate of the Sisters of St. Anne in Lachine, Quebec, and was professed in 1938. She taught in Quebec and Massachusetts, and served on the staff of Anna Maria College.
Following service at St. Anne Infirmary, she served as a missionary in Cameroun, where she taught and served as a nurse. Sister Barrette later ministered at Marie Esther Health Center.
She is survived by two sisters, Sister Veronica of Jesus Barrette, and Fernande Beaucage of Warwick; and a brother, Joseph Barrette of North Attleboro, Mass. She was the sister of the late St. Anne Sister M. Jacqueline Rita Barrette.
A Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated Nov. 5 in the chapel of St. Anne Convent. Burial was in St. Mary Cemetery, Marlborough.
