Dominican Sister, a fragrant rose, served 45 years in Hawaii
Sister Aurelia Sanchez, whose life was like the roses she cultivated, was the director of Rosary Preschool in Waipio Gentry and a member of the Dominican Sisters of the Most Holy Rosary of the Philippines. She died June 25 at Little Company of Mary Medical Center in Torrance, Calif., en route to a retreat in San Diego. Her pure and generous heart, which had labored ceaselessly for the Lord and the good of all, finally came to rest.
Sister Aurelia had turned 72 the day before she died, on the Feast of St. John the Baptist, and was looking forward to her golden jubilee of religious profession in 2015. She had served as an educator and congregational leader in Hawaii for 45 years and at schools on three islands.
Sister Aurelia was born on June 24, 1942, in Bacolod City, Philippines, to Dominico and Eduvijes Sanchez. She entered the convent in March 1963. In 1969, she boarded a Pan Am flight for her first mission to Hawaii. St. Catherine School in Kapaa, Kauai, welcomed her as their new principal and first Dominican, succeeding the Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
In 1972, Sister Aurelia became vice-principal of St. Joseph School in Makawao, Maui, where she served for seven years. This was followed by a five-year term as an eighth grade teacher at St. Elizabeth School in Aiea, Oahu.
In 1984, Sister Aurelia joined the faculty of St. John the Baptist School in Kalihi and two years later was named principal, a position she held until 1994. During that time, she was also engaged in graduate studies, receiving her master’s degree in educational administration in 1993 from the University of San Francisco.
1996 began her long love affair with the students and families of Rosary Preschool in Waipio. As the school’s director she patiently encouraged her faculty and students to strive for their best. Her personal philosophy was: “to be a fulfilled Dominican religious and to enable others to reach their fulfillment in life through her own Christian witness.”
In 2012 Rosary Preschool received recognition as an NAEYC accredited preschool. The Christian values instilled in the students continue to be passed on from generation to generation and from sibling to younger sibling.
Sister Aurelia also served the congregation as superior, regional councilor, secretary, and regional vicaress, watering the Hawaii region with wisdom and grace, and as an advocate for truth.
Daily after school, she could be found in the convent garden with pruning shears or watering can in hand tending to the plants, especially to her prized roses. Her life was truly a serene and fragrant reflection of the antiphon of St. Dominic she prayed each night:
“O light of the church, doctor of truth, rose of patience, ivory of chastity, you freely poured forth the waters of wisdom; preacher of grace unite us with the blessed.”
Sister Aurelia is predeceased by her twin brothers and survived by her two sisters, Eduvijes G. Sanchez and Tesoro Guinson Sanchez Alvarez, both of the Philippines. When this story went to print, funeral arrangements were pending.
