Sr Doreen Cuschieri had been headmistress since 1986.

The chapel at St Dorothy’s senior school was yesterday unusually packed with teenage students who had dropped in to say a few prayers for their beloved headmistress, Sr Doreen Cuschieri, who died after a long illness on Wednesday night.

“The girls crowded into the chapel as the news spread, just before assembly. It was touching to see even the naughtiest girls in tears. They were all there to pray for her,” said Theresa Galea-Curmi, a religion teacher at the Żebbuġ school.

Sr Doreen, who had recently been bedridden, would have turned 68 yesterday.

She entered the congregation at the age of 16 and became headmistress in 1986, steering the school through the troubles of the 1980s and later the move from Mdina.

In 2006 she became Provincial of the Sisters of St Dorothy congregation in Malta and England.

With her infectious joie de vivre, she became a mentor for numerous students and colleagues throughout the years.

Ms Galea-Curmi and school secretary Lucienne Zahra said that, as the news about her death spread around the school yesterday morning, students and staff were shocked.

It was touching to see even the naughtiest girls in tears. They were all there to pray for her

“Even though I was shocked, I can picture her in heaven adding happiness to the place and making everyone laugh,” said Ms Galea-Curmi as Ms Zahra added: “Her door was always open for staff and students... she was a mother figure to us.”

This was the same attitude she spread in the convent, said Sr Frances Galea, the headmistress of the junior school who lived with Sr Doreen in the convent.

“She always had a smile on her face, was always ready to help and never said no to a new duty.”

Cecile Bonello, a former assistant head under Sr Doreen, said: “Sr Doreen was not only our employer. She was our mother, our friend and our sister.”

Assistant head Caroline Anastasi agreed. She had worked with her for 15 years.

“She is a great loss. More than a headmistress, we lost a part of the family. I can’t imagine how St Dorothy’s will continue without her but, we will continue, for her,” she said.

Ms Anastasi also knew Sr Doreen as a student. Back then she thought of her as “the smiling nun who liked joining in the fun, was ready to accept everyone and go down to students’ level”.

Many students and former students shared the same sentiments, which they posted on Sr Doreen’s Facebook page.

One student wrote: “Thanks for everything you have done for us... we love you very much and we will always keep you in our prayers. RIP and happy birthday.”

Former student and blogger Alison Bezzina recalled seeing Sr Doreen walking around the school corridors “as though someone had just whispered a naughty joke in her ear”.

“She walked into classrooms announcing news as though someone had just tickled her silly, and she delivered bad news to parents and children with the kindest and sweetest of hopes... You may now report to your headmaster’s office for eternal laughs and love,” Ms Bezzina wrote.

The love of her students did not go unnoticed by Sr Doreen. In an interview with Times of Malta in 2006, she spoke about the important role nuns played in education.

“We get old girls coming back to thank us for the good attitude and spirit that the sisters have instilled in them, so it’s encouraging,” she said.

The funeral will take place today at Sacro Cuor Church in Sliema at 2.30pm.