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’ during world war ii, she followed her brother s lead again. george, an aircraft designer with curtiss-wright, told her the government was training women to replace male engineers who were heading of to war. he convinced nancie to interrupt her chemistry studies at mercyhurst to pursue an associate degree in aeronautical engineering at cornell university. she also kept up her fying lessons, though. when the airport in ithaca was closed, she hopped on a bicycle and pedaled to the nearest airfeld – 26 miles away – to continue fying. she absorbed her fascination with the skies from older brother george, frst her partner in helping neighborhood kids craft airplanes out of balsa wood and rubber bands, and later her instructor as she learned to fy the real thing – a biplane george had refurbished. nancie baltus was 15 when she took her frst fying lesson. ’ problems. Though she came within a few hours of completing the required practice time, she never did get a pilot s license. with her degree in hand, nancie went to work at curtiss-wright, helping to prepare engineering drawings for the c-46 cargo planes and p-40 pursuit planes manufactured at its bufalo plant. as her experience grew, she also found herself crawling inside planes on the assembly line to identify and solve EDITOR’S NOTE: At a recent fundraiser for Mercyhurst Prep, Sr. Mary Matthew bid on a fight in a fully restored 1943 open- cockpit biplane. When the price quickly rose beyond her budget, a Mercyhurst University trustee who’d like to remain anonymous stepped in to match the winning bid and secured a fight for her. This fall she’ll enjoy a 30-minute ride over Presque Isle with pilot Scott Allen in a plane much like the one in which she learned to fy. “ instead, in 1944, nancie changed course dramatically, joining the sisters of mercy who had so impressed her during the year and a half she studied at mercyhurst. i considered them the greatest women i had ever met, she says now. all the time i was at cornell and bufalo, i kept in touch with the sisters of mercy. i had a strong desire to join them and to share my life with them in service to the church. soon sr. mary matthew baltus was teaching in catholic grade schools, and returning to study at the hurst each summer until she completed her degree in math in 1950. ” “ ” ’ Then came more teaching, this time math and science at the high school level, while earning two graduate degrees: a master s in math from the university of pittsburgh (1957) and, with help from the national science foundation (nsf), a second master s from rensselaer polytechnic institute (rpi). when she got that degree in physical science in 1961, she joined the mercyhurst faculty. ’ ’ besides teaching her original specialty, math, she went on to found the school s earth science department and astronomy program. an engaging teacher, she quickly turned astronomy into one of the most popular courses on campus and helped develop one of the school s signature scientifc facilities – the observatory atop Zurn hall. ’
’ sr. mary matthew recalls the early years of the astronomy program. when the russians jump-started the space age by launching sputnik in 1957, the Erie Daily Times asked sr. mary charles weschler to help stage a photo. she set up the college s small refractor telescope atop preston hall and gathered a few students to pose with it. The publicity stunt prompted a scathing note from dr. John ruiz, an astronomer from ossining, n.y., pointing out the girls could not follow a satellite using that equipment. but it also led to a long-term relationship between mercyhurst and ruiz, who donated a better telescope and came to erie to install it. he eventually moved to erie, lectured at mercyhurst often, and continued to donate equipment. “ in 1967, when the college built Zurn hall to house the arts and sciences, dr. ruiz worked with sr. mary matthew to design the observatory. in order to be vibration free, the pier for the telescope had to be anchored in solid earth rock, she explains. when the basement level of Zurn was poured, a pier extended 30 feet below the foor and extended above the fourth foor. sr. mary matthew tapped her engineering background to supervise installation of the observatory and its 16-foot rotating dome and ruiz helped select a 10-inch refector telescope with clock drive and solar flters. ” “ ” - when the 26-year old observatory was renovated in 1993, mercyhurst took the opportunity to rename it the baltus observatory in sr. mary matthew s honor. ’ ’ SR. Matthew’S ManY RoleS The observatory may be sr. mary matthew s most tangible legacy, but it s only one facet of her contributions to mercyhurst. besides her long teaching career, sr. matthew s roles ranged from dean of students to interim academic dean, from frst president of the college senate to advisor of mercyhurst student government, from founder of the earth science department to chair of the science and math division. ’ ’ when mercyhurst introduced the intersession in 1967, she teamed up with dave Thomas and sr. eymard poydock to organize annual trips to the Virgin islands that allowed students to explore geology, astronomy and marine biology. she was a lifelong student as well, earning nsf grants to study at major universities around the country, doing astronomical research at major observatories, traveling the world to observe solar eclipses, visiting egypt and greece on a fulbright scholarship to study their cultures and landmarks, and taking elderhostel courses. Though she worked part time in later years, sr. mary matthew remained active on the faculty for some 40 years. even after her retirement in 2001, she continued to tutor adult students in math, gathering them around the dining room table of her home. ’ located on the hill south of mercyhurst (next door to mercyhurst prep), the home s décor features a number of sr. mary mathew s watercolors and the backyard boasts a thriving garden that she tends. she s also an accomplished knitter and only recently gave up kayaking, another favorite hobby. ’ ’
’ even at 90, the sky s still the limit for this remarkable woman.
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