Sr. Francis Clare Vickerd, CSJ, died May 25 in Kalamazoo. Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated May 31, followed by interment in Gate of Heaven Cemetery at Nazareth.

Angela Vickerd was born in Woodslee, Ontario, on May 12, 1911, the daughter of John and Pauline (Miller) Vickerd. She was a member of St. John the Evangelist Parish in Woodslee at the time of her entrance into the Congregation of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Nazareth on Aug. 2, 1936. She received the name Sr. Francis Clare at her reception on Aug. 24, 1937. She pronounced first vows on Aug. 26, 1939, and final vows on Aug. 25, 1942.

Sr. Vickerd earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from Nazareth College and a Master of Arts degree in Latin from St. Louis University. For 52 years, Sr. Vickerd ministered as a teacher in several of the congregation’s high schools including St. David Parish in Detroit, St. Gertrude Parish in St. Clair Shores and St. Francis Xavier Parish in Ecorse. Eleven of those years she served as a principal. She then served the congregation as Mistress of Junior Professed Sisters followed by 15 years of ministry as secretary to the SSJ Regional Coordinators in the Detroit area. In 1995, Sr. Vickerd retired to Nazareth, where she assisted in a variety of ways. She distributed mail each day to the sisters at Nazareth Center and Fontbonne Manor and she enjoyed visiting with the elderly and infirm sisters. Throughout her many years of ministry, Sr. Vickerd worked tirelessly to make life easier and more pleasant for those whose lives she touched.

Sr. Francis Clare Vickerd is survived by two sisters, Cecelia Hart of Leamington, Ontario, and Rita Glowa of Essex, Ontario, and several nieces and nephews.

Memorials to Congregation of St. Joseph, 3427 Gull Road, PO Box 29, Nazareth, Michigan 49074.