Sister Marilyn Trobaugh (formerly Sister Robert Louise)

Sister Marilyn Trobaugh, formerly Sister Robert Louise, passed away Sunday, May 18, 2025, at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods, Indiana. She was 89-years-old and had been a Sister of Providence for 71 years.

Commentary

By Sister Ann Casper, SP

Reading: Thessalonians 4:9-11

“But I don’t need to write to you about Christian love that should be shown among God’s people. For God has taught you to love one another. Indeed, your love is already strong toward all … Even so, dear brothers and sisters, we beg you to love them more and more. This should be your ambition: to live a quiet life, minding your own business and working with your hands, just as we have commanded you before.”

Often, Marilyn would talk about her childhood and visiting her grandfather’s farm near the Wabash River in northern Indiana. It gave her great pleasure, evidently, to watch him tending his crops and the animals. She also was proud of her father who was in the construction business and built homes for a living.

For me, both of these early life experiences translated to Marilyn’s love of working with her hands and doing very practical things. In her Sisters of Providence life, it meant making rosaries with the legendary Sister Baptista, who made chaplets for years.

Soon Marilyn was asked to make rosaries for all the golden jubilarians each year. She also carved pillar candles for the same purpose. Sister Maria Smith, her friend since childhood, even recalled that she delved into stained glass at one time.

Perhaps keeping her hands busy with jigsaw puzzles was related to this, too, as well as all the hours she spent in retirement measuring and cutting plastic bags which others would crochet into sleeping mats for the homeless. Her hands also loved to play cards and taught many sisters to drive through the years.

Marilyn June Trobaugh was born to Robert and Dorothy Vianco Trobaugh on February 18, 1936, in Lafayette, Indiana. She attended St. Mary Elementary School there and then came to the Aspirancy at the Woods for high school.

She graduated in 1954, the same year she entered the Congregation of the Sisters of Providence. In her early years, she was known as Sister Robert Louise except to her novitiate pals who dubbed her “Bobby Lou!”

She was received into the novitiate on August 15, 1954, and made first profession and final profession on the same date in 1956 and 1961, respectively. She earned a bachelor’s degree from Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College and a master’s degree from Ball State University, both in elementary education.

According to the family, Marilyn loved birthday parties, which she shared one day apart with her sister Pat – Marilyn celebrated on February 18, and Pat on February 17. More birthdays of family members in February followed, three in fact. Rather than spread birthdays over the entire month, Marilyn preferred one big party. Much more fun that way!

Marilyn’s earliest 17 years of ministry were spent in education, as primary teacher, principal and as school secretary. Then, she changed to a financial focus and bore such titles as business officer, maintenance supervisor, bookkeeper, local residence accounts manager and treasurer.

She used her financial expertise in nursing centers and in the Sisters of Providence central business office and her local residence. Many recall Marilyn’s kindness in helping them work through their monthly house accounts.

Nothing was a problem to Marilyn; she was always very patient and kind. Another interesting fact: all Marilyn’s ministry and living experiences were in Indiana – she was a Hoosier through and through, even to her greatly loyalty to the Indiana Pacers!

Marilyn followed her grandfather and father in her love of being outdoors. She especially loved flowers, and pansies were one of her favorites. When she lived on 10th Street in Terre Haute with Sister Marie Alexis Geiger, she was really disappointed to discover a lot of old playground gravel in the dirt (not good for flowers). However, Marilyn’s will created a way! Before long, she had beautiful flowers growing that were the envy of the neighborhood.

Another favorite memory of her great niece Julia was hearing Marilyn tell her stories when they would visit family graves in Delphi and Cutler, Indiana, each Memorial Day weekend. As they wandered among the family plots, Marilyn was a wealth of information, as to who was related to whom and usually had an interesting story about many of them. “What better way to learn about where you came from and one’s family history.”

Marilyn and Sister Brigid Bonner enjoyed a beautiful friendship, especially after they moved to Lourdes, both having rooms on the third floor. For years, we observed their daily ritual of walking the shrine path and on to the cemetery; gathering stale bread and then feeding the birds in the health care courtyard and spending hours together working jigsaw puzzles. Other sisters observed their fidelity to praying Vespers together each day, even when the group did not gather to do so.

And so, Marilyn, if it was ever your ambition, as St. Paul suggested, “to live a quiet life, mind your own business and work with your hands,” know that you have succeeded a hundredfold!

Thank you for the example you have been to all of us, and may we do likewise!

Funeral Information

Funeral services for Sister Marilyn took place on Wednesday, May 28, and Thursday, May 29, at the Church of the Immaculate Conception at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods.

A Wake took place from 2:30-4:30 p.m., on Wednesday, May 28. Mass of Christian Burial was at 11 a.m., on Thursday, May 29.

Memorial contributions may be made in honor of Sister Marilyn to the Sisters of Providence of Saint Mary-of-the-Woods.

We welcome you to share your memories of Sister Marilyn in the comment section below.

Sister Marilyn Trobaugh (formerly Sister Robert Louise)

Complete Ministry

In Indiana: Teacher, St. Philip Neri, Indianapolis (1956-59); Teacher, St. Charles, Peru (1959-66); Teacher, Holy Family, Jasper (1966-67); Teacher/Principal, St. Charles, Peru (1967-70); Business Officer, Providence Retirement Home, New Albany (1970-71); Maintenance, Our Lady of Providence, Clarksville (1971-73); School Secretary, St. Mary, Lafayette (1973-76); Bookkeeper, Colonial Crest Nursing Center, Indianapolis (1976-83); Bookkeeper, Brookview Manor Nursing Center, Indianapolis (1983-86); Bookkeeper, Pine Tree Manor, Indianapolis (1986-92); Bookkeeper, Nova Care, Inc., Indianapolis (1992-97); Staff Local Residences, Center Business Office, Sisters of Providence, Saint Mary-of-the-Woods (1997-2002); Local Residence Accounts Manager, Central Business Office, Sisters of Providence, Saint Mary-of-the-Woods (2002-17); Treasurer for Sisters of Providence in Lourdes Hall, Saint Mary-of-the-Woods (2017-21); Preparing bags for crocheted sleeping mats, Sisters of Providence, Terre Haute (2022-23), Prayer, Sisters of Providence, Saint Mary-of-the-Woods (2024-25).