Born to Roman and Christine (Boylan) Ress, Agnes and her three brothers grew up in a closely-knit family, centered in home, faith, and their beloved St. Mary Church in Massillon. In 1944, she entered the Sisters of Notre Dame as a postulant. At investment, she received the name Sister Mary Roman.
Sister ministered as an elementary and secondary school teacher before beginning nursing studies. She graduated from St. Alexis School of Nursing in Cleveland (1954) and earned both a bachelor’s and a master’s degree in nursing (1964, 1966) from St. Louis University in St. Louis, Missouri. In 1986 Sister Mary Roman completed requirements for a doctoral degree in nursing education from Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland. She was an instructor at St. Alexis School of Nursing, St. Michael School of Nursing in Toronto, Canada and at Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing at Case Western Reserve University. She established the nursing program at George Brown College (Toronto). For more than 30 years, she served as coordinator and consultant for the health needs of the sisters. She also served on disaster response teams for the Red Cross.
With great awareness of the poor, Sister joined with two colleagues at Geauga Hospital, Dr. Arturo Dimaculangan and Susan Juhasz, to establish the Good Tidings Choir in 1989. Annual concerts benefit the Geauga County Hunger Task Force.
The private Mass of Christian Burial was held on Friday, January 22, at 10:30 a.m. with Fr. James Caddy as celebrant.