(1920-2017)

Sister Joanne, baptized Helen Susan O’Connor, was born on April 5, 1920, in Chicago. She was the sixth child born to the Irish Catholic family of Daniel and Corinne (Barry) O’Connor. Her father was a graduate of the University of Notre Dame who, after serving in the army during World War I, became a real estate agent and efficiency expert. Her mother was a California native who had studied at the University of California in Berkeley and, according to Joanne, was a gifted artist and poet. 

In 1922 everything changed for this young idyllic family when their mother died of pneumonia. In her autobiography, Sister Joanne described how she, her siblings and her father coped with the impact of their mother’s death.

My father’s courage in coping with the dilemma of six youngsters, for whom he had to be both parents, has always filled me with awe and respect. He attempted at first to keep us together by hiring housekeepers. However, none of these satisfied his criteria of child guardians so he decided to place us in Catholic boarding schools. When I was three, my sisters and I began this phase of our lives with [two years at St Angela Academy] in Morris, Illinois; [two years at Immaculate Conception] in Davenport, Iowa; and [two years at St. Mary Academy] in Notre Dame, Indiana. My two brothers were placed in boarding schools as close to us as possible so that my father’s visits could include all six of us. For Christmas and summer vacations, we gathered in a rented house or apartment with a housekeeper to care for us. These times together were precious hours when we learned to know each other and our father in a more normal home environment. Perhaps his dual responsibility caused my father to become quite strict and exacting in his treatment of us, so I learned early that manifestations of love and affection would be found in my siblings rather than in my father. I am certain that this has greatly influenced my life.

Read more about Sister Joanne (pdf)

Memorial gifts may be made to Adrian Dominican Sisters, 1257 East Siena Heights Drive, Adrian, Michigan, 49221. 

(1928-2017)

Sister Donna Wencel, known as Sister Frederick Mary, was born on a farm near Wayne, Michigan, on December 30, 1928. She was the seventh of nine children born to Frederick and Martha (Klebba) Wencel. Their first-born child, a girl, died at the age of two. In her autobiography, Sister Donna wrote the following about her family:

Our family was poor but rich in love. My parents were always ready to help those who were less fortunate than we were. Many times the walls of our home were stretched to the utmost. I remember when I was in 4th grade, we came home from school and my Mother told my sister and me not to go to our bedroom because we would be sleeping upstairs in the large room with my older sisters. It seems that a family in the area had lost their home due to the husband’s illness and they had nowhere to go so my Mother and Father took the family in. That family consisted of a mother, father and two daughters. They stayed with us for a year and a half.

Read more about Sister Donna (pdf)

Memorial gifts may be made to Adrian Dominican Sisters, 1257 East Siena Heights Drive, Adrian, Michigan, 49221.

Leave your comments and remembrances (if you don't see the comment box below, click on the "Read More" link).

(1930-2017)

Sister Diane Erbacher, known also as Sister Mary Carlanne, was born in San Jose, California, on January 29, 1930. She was the oldest of three children born to Charles and Anne (Foltz) Erbacher. Her two younger brothers were Bill and Jimmy, who was born with a genetic chromosome disorder known as Down Syndrome. Her father was born in Covington, Kentucky, and her mother in Spencer, Nebraska.

The family moved several times and, as a result, Sister Diane was educated in several schools: St. Francis School in Baker, Oregon, and St. Mary School in Bedford, Oregon.

When Sister Diane was in the seventh grade at St. Mary, her family moved to Santa Cruz, California, and she finished her elementary and secondary education in Santa Cruz at Holy Cross School. This was her first contact with the Adrian Dominican Sisters, who staffed the grade school and the high school.

During her high school years, Sister Diane also worked at Sisters’ Hospital, located on West Cliff Drive. According Sister Christine Ostrowski, Sister Diane spoke fondly of her days working at the hospital and getting to know the Sisters.

Read more about Sister Diane (pdf)

Memorial gifts may be made to Adrian Dominican Sisters, 1257 East Siena Heights Drive, Adrian, Michigan, 49221. Funeral arrangements are being handled by Anderson Funeral Home, Adrian.

Leave your comments and remembrances (if you don't see the comment box below, click on the "Read More" link).

(1920-2017)

Sister Marie Sheila, baptized Mary Arlene Beatty, was born on August 21, 1920, in Lansing, Michigan. She was the third of seven children born to Howard and Agnes (Torpey) Beatty. Two of her brothers, Billy and Robert, died in infancy: Billy in 1919 and Robert in 1922. Sister Sheila thought both deaths could have been related to the flu epidemic that swept the country after World War I. 

In her autobiography, Sister Sheila gave a detailed account of her parents. The following are a few highlights. 

My mother was born in Duro, Ontario, Canada, and received most of her education at Loretto Abbey School in Toronto. By the time she was eighteen she was living alone in Lansing. She studied nursing for a year but ended up working as a private secretary. My father was from a Methodist family in Petoskey, Michigan. He worked on a farm to pay for his education in electrical engineering at Michigan State University. After he was baptized Catholic, my parents married and lived in Lansing, where my father found a job doing research on car motors and styling at REO Motor Car Company. [REO were the initials of the founder, Ransom Eli Olds.] When the company was sold to General Motors my father lost his job and we moved to Petoskey and lived with my grandparents until 1921 when my father found a job in Saginaw. It was here that my father began his high school teaching and coaching career that lasted for the next forty years. 

Read more about Sister Marie Sheila (pdf)

Memorial gifts may be made to Adrian Dominican Sisters, 1257 East Siena Heights Drive, Adrian, Michigan, 49221.

Leave your comments and remembrances (if you don't see the comment box below, click on the "Read More" link).