Sister Pat Eck celebrates 50 years with Sisters of Bon Secours

Sister Patricia Eck, who serves with the Sisters of Bon Secours, celebrates this year her 50th jubilee, which recognizes her five decades of service with the Roman Catholic congregation. Eck is the congregation leader of the Congregation of the Sisters of Bon Secours of Paris.

Eck assumed leadership of the congregation in 2009 as it transitioned to a new organizational and governance structure, eliminating country provinces, to function as one international entity and moving its international headquarters from Paris to Marriottsville. Previously, Eck served as chair of the board of Bon Secours Health System, also headquartered in Marriottsville.

Eck was born and raised in Richmond, Virginia. She entered the congregation in 1966 and took her final vows in 1977. Her health care career spans more than 50 years and includes clinical nursing experience, health care administration, and sponsorship and governance roles for Bon Secours Health System and its hospitals.

In 2006, she was one of the primary leaders in creating and structuring Bon Secours Ministries as the ministerial sponsor for Bon Secours Health System and serves as chairperson of its member board. Under Eck’s leadership, this sponsoring organization for Bon Secours Health System included, for the first time, laypeople working side by side with the Sisters of Bon Secours as sponsors.

She has served in both nursing and administrative roles at St. Mary’s Hospital in Richmond and was executive vice president for mission and quality at Bon Secours Richmond Health Corp. before becoming chair of the board of directors for the Bon Secours Health System.

Eck has been recognized nationally for her leadership in creating alignment between sponsorship and governance. She served as chairperson of the Catholic Health Association, and in 2007, received the Sister Mary Concilia Moran Award from the association. In 2011, she received the papal award, Cross Pro Ecclesia et Ponifice medal.

She serves on the compensation and pension and investment committees of the Bon Secours Health System board and as treasurer and chair of the finance and audit committee of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious, where she is a member of its board and executive committee. Eck has also served as chairperson of the Corporate Members of Mercy Housing and on the Catholic Medical Mission Board. She is currently a member of the board’s Friends in Solidarity.

Eck earned a master’s degree in health administration from the Medical College of Virginia at Virginia Commonwealth University, a master’s degree in nursing from Catholic University of America and a bachelor’s degree in nursing from the Medical College of Virginia at Virginia Commonwealth University.