Providence Sister Lucille Nolan, 94, died Dec. 25, 2023, in Terre Haute Indiana.

She taught music for 33 years in schools in Illinois, Indiana, Texas, Oklahoma and North Carolina. In 1983, she moved from school music to church music, serving as director of music and liturgy at two parishes in the Chicago area for the next 23 years.

In the Archdiocese of Chicago, she ministered in church and school music at St. Isaac Jogues, Niles (1983-1985); as director of music and liturgy at St. Dismas, Waukegan (1985-1994); and as director of music and liturgy (1994-2004) and in religious education and children’s music (2004-2008) at St. James, Sauk Village.

After officially retiring, she remained in the Chicago area, ministering to the homebound and persons in hospice.

Beginning in 2022, she dedicated herself totally to the ministry of prayer.

Sister Lucille is survived by a brother, John Nolan, and a sister, Providence Sister Carol Nolan.

Providence Sister Carolyn (John Michael) Glynn, 88, died Dec. 28 in St. Mary-of-the-Woods, Indiana.

Born in Massachusetts, Sister Carolyn entered the Sisters of Providence in 1953 and professed final vows in 1961. She ministered as a primary teacher for 22 years in Indiana, Massachusetts, California and Illinois. After completing a doctorate in ministry, she served in parish ministry for 12 years in the Archdiocese of Chicago before moving to Florida.

In the Archdiocese of Chicago, she taught at St. Mel (1956-1958); St. Genevieve (1969-1971); St. Athanasius, Evanston (1971-1974); and St. Gregory (1974-1977); was director of religious education at St. Mary, Riverside (1980-1987); and was a consultant on religious education and spirituality (1987-1992).

Sister Carolyn is survived by three sisters: Elizabeth Hannon, Rosemary Baglio and Florence Ryan; and two brothers: Timothy Glynn and Allen Glynn.

Redemptorist Father Ramon “Ray” Dompke, 85, died Jan. 7 in the rectory of St. Michael Parish in Old Town.

Born in Chicago, he was baptized at St. Michael and attended elementary school there before going to St. Joseph’s Preparatory Seminary in Kirkwood, Missouri, and entering the Redemptorist novitiate at Mount St. Clement in DeSoto, Missouri. He professed temporary vows in 1959, perpetual vows in 1962 and was ordained to the priesthood in 1964.

Father Dompke served as associate pastor of parishes in Iowa, Nebraska and Michigan, as well as St. Michael (1982-1993) and St. Alphonsus (Wellington Avenue, 1993, 1995) before being named pastor of Our Lady of Lourdes Parish on the West Side (1995-2005).

Father Dompke was named bursar of the Villa Redeemer/North American Novitiate community in Glenview in 2005. He served as rector of the community from 2011 until 2015, when the property was sold.

He returned to the staff at St. Michael’s, where he felt blessed to be near his family, especially his elderly mother, whom he visited every week until she died at the age of 105 in 2019.

In addition to serving the parish community, he volunteered to preach foreign mission appeals throughout the Midwest until his health began to decline.

Resurrection Sister Mary Florence Schultz, 92, died Nov. 17, 2023.

Born in Minnesota, she entered the Sisters of the Resurrection in 1950.

She began her ministry as a second grade teacher at St. Mary of the Angels. Four years later, she began training as a nurse, and went on to receive bachelor’s and master’s degrees in nursing. She had additional training in caring for alcoholic patients and patients with infectious diseases, which led to her ministries in the alcoholic rehabilitation and infectious disease programs at Resurrection Hospital.

Sister M. Florence also served as director of nursing at Resurrection Nursing Pavilion, became a licensed nursing home administrator and served as the administrator of Resurrection Life Center at its opening. She went on to serve as regional performance improvement director for 11 nursing homes that were part of Resurrection Health Care.

Sister M. Florence’s final ministry was to care for the senior members of the congregation.

Felician Sister Mary Alodia (Mary Barbara) Stozek, 100, died Nov. 26, 2023, at Mother of Good Counsel Convent.

Born in Chicago, she attended St. John of God and St. Joseph schools, then joined the Felician Sisters aspirancy, where she attended Good Counsel High School. She entered the Felician Sisters postulancy in 1942 and professed her final vows in 1949. 

She ministered in Illinois elementary schools as a teacher and served as a psychologist at Good Counsel High School. Later, she worked as a college instructor and director of the Psychoeducational Center at Felician College. She held a leadership position with the Felician community and was the provincial archivist from 1998 to 2015.

In the Archdiocese of Chicago, she ministered at Holy Innocents (1941-1942, 1960); St. Mary Magdalen (1943-1945); St. Hedwig, Niles (1945-1953); St. Stanislaus, Posen (1953-1954); Sts. Peter and Paul (1954-1957); St. James (1957-1960); Felician College (1965-1982); and Good Counsel High School (1988-1992).

Sinsinawa Dominican Sister Jeri (Mary de Paul) Cashman, 76, died Dec. 9, 2023, in Muskego, Wisconsin.

Born in Minneapolis, Sister Jeri professed vows in 1967.

Sister Jeri served as a justice and peace campus minister, a social worker, a teacher and a pastoral minister in Minnesota, Wisconsin and Illinois. Sister Jeri served as a justice and peace campus minister at the University of Illinois at Chicago. She served as pastoral minister in the Diocese of Chilpancingo, Mexico, with a ministry team on behalf of the Archdiocese of Chicago, ministering with 23 communities in the parish of Santiago Apostol in Quechultenango. She also ministered in Bolivia.

She is survived by her brother, Thomas Cashman, and her sister, Carol Rosendahl.

Servants of the Holy Heart of Mary Sister M. June (Alphonse Marie) Hoffman, 98, died Dec. 13, 2023, in Rockford.

A former member of St. Gall Parish, Chicago, Sister June entered the congregation in 1942 and made final vows in 1945.

She taught at St. Gall School, as well as in schools in the Joliet diocese.  She served her religious congregation as formation director and provincial superior, and was the founding administrator of St. Anne Center in Rockford, where she lived and ministered in various capacities from 1993 to her death.

Sister of Christian Charity Therese (Nelwyn) Fields, 98, died Dec. 14, 2023, at Sacred Heart Convent, Wilmette.

Born in Louisiana, she entered the congregation in 1938, made first vows in 1943 and made perpetual vows in 1949.

She taught at St. Aloysius School and at St. Martha, Morton Grove, in the 1940s and 1950s, before being sent to New Orleans.

She returned in 1967 to St. Theresa School, Palatine.

In the 1970s, she ministered at the House of Prayer in Steger, then in Calumet City, and as retreat director at St. Margaret Mary Convent.

In the 1990s, Sister Therese served as the local superior of the motherhouse in Wilmette, directress of junior sisters and novice directress. Then she moved to the St. Joseph Convent and served at the St. Joseph Parish Prayer Center. She also did prayer ministry at St. Mary of Celle Convent in Berwyn before moving to Sacred Heart Convent in Wilmette as a patient in 2015.

Sister of St. Joseph Maria Hill, 85, died Dec. 16, 2023.

Sister Maria earned master’s degrees in educational administration and religious education, as well as a certificate in spiritual direction.

Sister Maria taught and was principal of schools in Minnesota before going into religious education.  As a member of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Medaille, she served on various congregational leadership teams for 20 years. 

She also worked as a facilitator and consultant to other religious communities.  At the Congregation of St. Joseph in La Grange, Sister Maria continued to work as a facilitator and spiritual director, as well as a member of the leadership team.

She is survived by her sister, Helen Hill.

Father Bernard J. Pietrzak, 68, died Nov. 29, He was pastor of St. Anne Parish, Barrington.

Born in Hammond, Indiana, Father Pietrzak attended Quigley Preparatory Seminary, Niles College of Loyola University, and the University of St. Mary of the Lake/Mundelein Seminary before being ordained in 1981.

He served as associate pastor of St. Victor, Calumet City; Holy Cross, Deerfield; and Church of the Holy Spirit, Schaumburg. He was pastor of St. Raymond de Penafort, Mount Prospect, from 1996 to 2009 before being named pastor of St. Anne Parish in 2009.

Father Jerome Jacob got to know Father Pietrzak when he served as his associate pastor at St. Raymond de Penafort.

“Bernie was a good mentor and friend. He always saw the best in people. He would encourage young priests and welcome them,” Jacob said. “The Sunday assembly was very important to him. …  He was very dedicated to adult formation, marriage preparation, etc., to help people grow in their spirituality.”

Father Joji Thanugundla and Father Rodolfo Ramirez, associate pastors of St. Anne, wrote a tribute to Pietrzak on the parish’s Instagram account and said: “Father Bernie served our St. Anne community with unwavering dedication, compassion, and a profound commitment to his faith. He touched the lives of many with his inspiring homilies, guidance, and selfless service.”

Deacon N. Arthur Metallo, 86, died Dec. 3. He was ordained in 1974 and served at St. Martha Parish, Morton Grove.

Deacon Metallo worked as a Jewel Foods grocery store manager before becoming pastoral care director at St. Francis Hospital, Evanston, and Resurrection Hospital. He was honored as National Chaplains Association Chaplain of the Year when he retired.

He is survived by his wife, Nancy, and his children Cheryl Bischoff, Susan Metallo and Lou Metallo; eight grandchildren; four great-grandchildren; and siblings of Carole Metallo, Fran Falcone and Bobby Metallo.

Divine Word Brother John DeBold, 89, a missionary who helped people with disabilities overcome isolation, died on Oct. 13.

Born in Pittsburgh, he began to develop bilateral profound deafness as a teenager but continued to learn with the help of hearing aids and sign language.

A Divine Word confrere once asked about his journey to missionary life, and Brother John responded, “I had the urge to become a priest or missionary since age 17 or so. I knew I was handicapped and knew what it meant and felt like. I had the call to help those in the world who were similar to [me].”

After graduating from high school, Brother John worked in Nabisco’s baking and mixing departments for 17 years. In his mid-30s, he yearned for more, and he entered the Society of the Divine Word in 1973.

He graduated from Gallaudet University in Washington, D.C., in 1984 and the following year he was assigned to work for the deaf ministry of the Archdiocese of New Orleans. He later was transferred to Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, and continued working in deaf ministry in the Diocese of Biloxi.

After returning to Pittsburgh to care for his mother, Brother John volunteered at the Pittsburgh Deaf Center, which focuses on deaf clients with developmental disabilities, and worked in Goodwill Industries’ wood shop training program, where he assisted deaf and developmentally disabled clients.

Adrian Dominican Sister Mary Catherine (Ann Virginia) Gagliano, 85, died Nov. 27 in Adrian, Michigan.

Born in Rockford, she was in the 66th year of her religious life.

Sister Mary Catherine ministered in education, pastoral care and campus ministry, and as a volunteer in Michigan and Illinois.

In the Archdiocese of Chicago, she taught at St. Rita School (1963-1967); Our Lady of Knock, Calumet City (1967-1969); St. Philip Neri (1969-1971); St. Celestine, Elmwood Park (1971-1974); Trinity High School, River Forest (1980-1981); and Mother Guerin High School, River Grove (1991-1992); did vocation outreach for the Adrian Dominican congregation (2008-2010); volunteered in the food pantry at St. Germaine Parish, Oak Lawn (2010-2015) and tutored in the Sister of St. Joseph School on Wheels (2010-2017).

She is survived by a brother, Frank Gagliano, and a sister, Virginia La Marca.

Deacon George Brooks, 83, of Tinley Park, died Nov. 15. He was ordained in 1991 and served at Infant Jesus of Prague in Flossmoor and as a chaplain at Cook County Jail.

Deacon Brooks is survived by his wife, Patricia; his children Karen Hyma, Donna Lanigan and Patrick Brooks; eight grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren. He was predeceased by one child, Georgie Brooks.

Deacon John J. Debnar, 93, formerly of Brookfield and Countryside, died Nov. 22. He served for 40 years at St. Barbara Parish, Brookfield.

Deacon Debnar was an Air Force veteran and worked as a barber.

His wife, Mary Ann, predeceased him. He is survived by his children Steven Debnar, Jack Debnar, Mary Ann Debnar, Tim Debnar and Chris Debnar; 12 grandchildren; six great-grandchildren; and siblings Mike Debnar and Helen Benway.

Adrian Dominican Sister Mary J. (Clare Olivia) Beaubien, 95, died Oct. 25 in Adrian, Michigan.

Born in Adrian, she was in the 78th year of her religious life.

Sister Beaubien ministered in all levels of education years in Illinois, Michigan, Florida and Ohio, and in community development and teacher training in Mogwase and Kroonstad, South Africa.

In the Archdiocese of Chicago, she taught at St. Celestine, Elmwood Park.

She is survived by her sister, Margaret Simonis.

Adrian Dominican Sister Marlene (Anthony Irene) Kuhnlein, 89, died Oct. 28 in Adrian, Michigan.

Born in Chicago, she was in her 72nd year of religious life.

Sister Marlene was a teacher; residential home staff member, case worker and social worker; pastoral counselor and bereavement companion; and secretary in Michigan, Illinois, Florida, New Mexico and Arizona.

In the Archdiocese of Chicago, she taught at St. Albert the Great, Oak Lawn (1962-1966); Queen of Apostles, Riverdale (1966-1967); St. Laurence (1967-1969); St. James, Maywood (1969-1972); and Regina Dominican High School, Wilmette (1972-1974).

Sinsinawa Dominican Sister Dorothy (Rita Cascia) Victor, 93, died Oct. 28 in Milwaukee.

Born in Rockford, she made her first religious profession in 1950, and her perpetual profession in 1953. She was a teacher and principal, and spent seven years as a missionary in Cochabamba, Bolivia. In the U.S., she ministered in Illinois, Wisconsin, the District of Columbia and Florida.

In the Archdiocese of Chicago, Sister Dorothy taught at St. Philip Benizi (1950-1956), St. Jarlath (1963-1966) and St. Basil (1978-1980).

Daughter of Charity Sister Marillac (Mildred Elizabeth) Grabinski, 94, died Oct. 30 in Evansville, Indiana.

Born in Chicago, she graduated from Good Counsel High School in 1947 and entered the Daughters of Charity in St. Louis in 1951.

After initial formation, Sister Marillac taught at elementary schools in Missouri, Alabama, Utah and Illinois. She also served as a docent at the Seton Shrine in Emmitsburg, Maryland; worked in social services and as a parish visitor and as an outreach minister.

In the Archdiocese of Chicago, she taught at St. Francis de Sales School in Lake Zurich (1980) and worked at Marillac Social Center (1980, 1986-1989) and St. Joseph Hospital (1989-1994).

Providence Sister Loretta Picucci, 82, died Nov. 9 in Providence Health Care in St. Mary-of-the-Woods, Indiana.

Sister Loretta was born in Chicago and attended Our Lady of Sorrows School and Providence High School. She entered the Sisters of Providence in 1964 and professed final vows in 1976.

In her 59 years as a Sister of Providence, she ministered as a primary teacher, assistant director of a day nursery, outreach minister, family care professional and teacher of English as a second language.

In the Archdiocese of Chicago, she taught at St. Mel (1972-1977); was assistant director of St. Columbkille Day Nursery (1981-1983); and was an aide with Family Care Services (1994-1999).

Sister Loretta is survived by a sister, Josephine Mooney.