Irma Avila, SL

Sister Irma Avila SL came to Loretto Academy in El Paso, TX as a first grader in 1959. Fifty years later she was scrambling on scaffolding as she supervised the Windows to the Future project to replace inefficient wooden frames on this beautiful El Paso landmark. Sr. Irma's father was a printer with the El Paso School District and both parents made many sacrifices to provide Catholic education for daughters, Velma and Irma. After her dad's death Irma worked operating the convent switchboard and in the high school office to cover her own tuition. A proud member of Loretto's class of '71, Sister Irma pursued a Bachelor's in Business at EPCC and UTEP working part-­‐time. She recalls, "I think the call to religious life was like a night light burning steadily, but dimly, throughout my life. I worked, lived at home, helped support our family and gradually came to see the light."

Area: Central / Austin Terrace

Source: Eva Ross

Uploaded by: El Paso Museum of History