Obituaries

John B. Adams III, born on March 13, 1933, was sent peacefully to his eternal home on October 2, 2025, at age 92 surrounded by his loving family. He outlived his loving wife, Nancy, after being married to her for 43 years. John is survived by his three children and daughter-in-law: Elizabeth Van Blargan of...

Sister of St. Joseph Marie Albert Alderman died Oct. 5, 2016. She was 91 years old.

She entered the congregation in 1944 from her home parish of Blessed Sacrament, Rochester. She earned a bachelor's degree in education at Nazareth College in 1951.

Sister Alderman taught at St. Francis Xavier, Sacred Heart and Our...

Father William Amann, a diocesan priest for 69 years and the founding pastor of Hamlin's St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish, died Aug. 3, 2023, at Rochester General Hospital. He was 95 years old.

Father Amann was a native of Rochester's St. Boniface Parish. He attended Stella Niagara Cadet School in Lewiston, near...

Father Bruce Ammering, a retired diocesan priest and hospital chaplain, died Dec. 3, 2015. He was 88 years old.

Father Ammering grew up in St. Monica Parish in Rochester and attended the parish school before completing his seminary studies at St. Andrew's and St. Bernard's seminaries, also in Rochester. He was...

Religious Teachers Filippini Sister Elizabeth Arcangeli, a native of Watkins Glen, died Nov. 14, 2018. She was 97 years old.

Sister Arcangeli entered the congregation in 1937 and professed final vows in 1941. She earned degrees from St. Elizabeth College, Seton Hall University and Fordham University.

She taught at...

Sister of St. Joseph Mary Bernadette Aselin died Oct. 6, 2015. She was 98 years old.

She entered the congregation in 1931 from her home parish of Our Lady of Lourdes. She completed her teacher education program at Nazareth Normal School in 1938.

Sister Aselin taught at Immaculate Conception, St. Monica and St....

Sister of St. Joseph Teresa Auberger (formerly Sister Teresa Martin), died Feb. 27, 2013, at the age of 94.

Sister Auberger entered the congregation in 1936. She completed her B.E. in 1948 and earned a B.A. in English in 1954, both at Nazareth College of Rochester.

She taught at Our Lady of Victory, St. Augustine...

School Sister of Notre Dame Mary Catherine Austin, 89, died Nov. 9, 2004, at the Lourdes Health Center in Wilton, Conn.

She earned a master's degree at Boston College and taught for more than 40 years in elementary and high schools, including Bishop Kearney High School in Irondequoit. She then served the...

Father John Eudes Bamberger, OCSO, abbot emeritus of the Abbey of the Genesee in Piffard, died Feb. 21, 2020. He was 93.

Father Bamberger was born in 1926 in Cincinnati, Ohio. He entered the U.S. Navy at the age of 17 and served in World War II before becoming a medical doctor at a young age. He entered the Order...

Sister of St. Joseph Helen Anne Barry, 89, died Jan. 3, 2008, at the congregation's motherhouse in Pittsford.

Sister Barry entered the congregation from her home parish of Ss. Peter and Paul in Rochester in 1936 and completed Nazareth Normal School in 1939. She earned a bachelor's degree in music in 1950 and a...

The oldest living alumnus of St. Joseph Hospital's School of Nursing in

Elmira, Sister Mary Roch Basso, died Oct. 13, 2003. She was 98.

A native of Susquehanna, Pa., Sister Basso graduated as a registered

nurse in 1926 and entered the Sisters of St. Joseph in Rochester in

1927. She began her nursing career at...

Sister Alma Joseph Bauman of the Sisters of St. Joseph died at the congregation's motherhouse on Jan. 7, 2004. She was 96.

Sister Bauman entered the congregation in 1931 from her home parish, Holy Trinity, Webster. Following an assignment at Immaculate Conception School in Ithaca, she assumed clerical duties at...

Sister David Marie Beikirch, OP, who spent most of her life as a cloistered nun at the former Monastery of Mary the Queen in Elmira, died March 21, 2025. She was 81 years old.

Sister Beikirch grew up in St. Charles Borromeo Parish in Greece. She then attended Nazareth Academy and Nazareth College before entering...

Dr. Gerald Benjamin, the beloved principal of St. Agnes School in Avon for 19 years until his 2016 retirement, died Aug. 4, 2020. He was 82 years old.

A native of Springfield, Mass., Dr. Benjamin earned his bachelor's degree from American International College, master's from Tufts University, and doctorate in...

Deacon Albert P. Bergeron, retired deacon at Our Lady Queen of Peace Church, Brighton, died Sunday, Sept. 17, 2006, at Strong Memorial Hospital in Rochester. He was 84.

Ordained by Bishop Matthew Clark in 1986, Deacon Bergeron graduated in 1987 from St. Bernard's Institute in Rochester with a master of arts in...

Sister Cecile Berwind (Sister Helen Cecilia), SSJ, who spent more than 45 years teaching at the high-school level, died Feb. 26, 2006, at the Sisters of St. Joseph Motherhouse in Rochester. She was 94.

Sister Berwind entered the congregation in 1930 from her home parish of St. Michael's in Rochester. She earned her...

Deacon Herbert P. "Herb" Bietry, a permanent deacon in the Diocese of Rochester who was ordained in 2013, died May 26, 2021. He was 69 years old.

A Gates native, Deacon Bietry attended Holy Ghost church and school, as well as the former Cardinal Mooney High School in Rochester. He studied accounting at St. John...

Sister Mary Lee Bishop, a native of St. Anthony Parish in Groton, N.Y., died May 16, 2006, at the Sisters of St. Joseph motherhouse at the age of 70.

Sister Bishop, formerly Sister Ramon, received her bachelor's degree from Nazareth College prior to joining the congregation in 1958. She subsequently earned a...

Sister Teresa "Terri" Bolha (formerly Sister Mary Becket) died Nov. 24, 2014, at Mercy Center, Brighton, after a long illness. She was 74.

Sister Bolha taught physical education at Nazareth Academy, Rochester, before entering the Sisters of Mercy on Sept. 4, 1965. She professed final vows on Oct. 25, 1975.

She...

Father Bernardo (John) Bonowitz of the Abbey of the Genesee in Piffard died Jan. 19, 2025. He was 75 years old.

A native of the Bronx, N.Y., Father Bonowitz took his first vows at St. Joseph Abbey in Spencer, Mass. He then served as superior for the Abbey of Genesee's daughter house, Novo Mundo in Brazil in 24...

Sister of St. Joseph Genevieve Borgyon (formerly Mary Elizabeth) died Sept. 21, 2020. She was 103 years old.

Sister Borgyon entered the congregation in 1935 from her home parish of St. John the Evangelist, Greece. She received a bachelor's degree in 1946 and a master's degree in education in 1957, both from...

Basilian Father Angelo Bovenzi, who taught French at Pittsford's St. John Fisher College for several years and assisted in campus ministry there, died Nov. 3, 2008. He was 69.

Father Bovenzi was born in Rochester and was baptized at Holy Apostles Church. A 1956 graduate of Aquinas Institute, he professed his vows...

Father Alexander H. Bradshaw, a former British barrister who logged 40 years as a priest of the Diocese of Rochester, died Dec. 12, 2025, in Gainesville, Fla., after a long illness. He was 84 years old.

"He brought to his priestly ministry a rich set of skills and personal experience," said Father Peter Clifford,...

Sister of St. Joseph Diane Branch died March 9, 2020. She was 87 years old.

Sister Branch entered the congregation in 1950 from her home parish of St. John the Evangelist, Greece. She earned a bachelor's degree in music in 1960 and a master's degree in music education in 1968, both from Nazareth College. In 1982,...

Sister of St. Joseph Margaret Brennan (formerly Sister Honora), founder of St. Joseph's Northside ministry, died Sept. 14, 2019. She was 80 years old.

Sister Brennan entered the congregation from her home parish of Sacred Heart Cathedral in 1956. She earned a bachelor's degree in English in 1961 from Nazareth...

Barbara Ann Brennan, cofounder of the Anawim spiritual community in Corning, died July 14, 2021, at the Anawim Community Center in Las Piñas, Philippines. She was 86 years old.

Ms. Brennan was a native of Brooklyn. In May 1961, she entered the Servants of the Blessed Sacrament in Waterville, Maine, a religious...

School Sister of Notre Dame Mary Louise Brien (formerly Sister Miriam Raymond) died Aug. 29, 2021. She was 89 years old.

Sister Brien attended elementary school at Ss. Peter and Paul School in Rochester. Following elementary school, she followed her older sisters, Virginia and Dolores, to the School Sisters of...

Father Lewis Brown, who served 22 of his 53 priestly years as a military chaplain and was later a fixture at Corning's All Saints Parish for more than a decade, died Sept. 5, 2020. He was 79 years old.

Father Brown was an Elmira native who grew up in St. Mary Southside Parish. He attended Elmira Notre Dame High...

Sister of Mercy Mary Marena Buckland, a native of St. Ambrose Parish in Rochester, died Sept. 6, 2006, at the age of 68.

An elementary teacher for 23 years, she served at Holy Cross and St. Andrew Schools, Rochester; St. Vincent, Corning; St. Michael, Newark; St. Rita, Webster; and Good Shepherd, Henrietta....

Sister of St. Joseph Marjorie Burger (formerly Sister Valerian) died Nov. 29, 2011. She was 87.

Sister Burger entered the congregation in 1942 from Holy Family Parish in Auburn. At Nazareth College in Pittsford, she earned bachelor's degrees in education in 1948 and in English and general science in 1958. She...

Deacon Robert J. Burke, a permanent deacon in the Diocese of Rochester for 23 years, died July 1, 2022, at the Advent House comfort-care home in Fairport after a lengthy battle with cancer. He was 80 years old.

Deacon Burke was a native of Haverstraw, N.Y. He graduated from Fordham University in 1963 with a...

Deacon George W. Burnett, who served for many years as permanent deacon at St. Patrick's Parish in Owego, died Oct. 8, 2004, at his Owego home after a lengthy battle with lung cancer. He was 76 years old.

Deacon Burnett was a native of the village of Valatie, located near Albany. He attended Siena College and was...

Father William A. Burns, pastor of St. Anthony's Parish in Elmira from

1953-77, died on Aug. 20, 2003, at St. Joseph's Hospital in Elmira. He

was 96.

Father Burns was born in Kansas City, Mo., but spent most of his

childhood in Elmira. He grew up in St. Patrick's Parish in Elmira,

attending its school as...

Sister of St. Joseph Anne Marie Burns (formerly Sister Thecla), who was a teacher and registered nurse, died Aug. 8, 2024. She was 87 years old.

Sister Burns entered the congregation in 1955 from her home parish of St. Charles Borromeo, Greece. She received a bachelor's degree in education in 1962 and a bachelor's...

Sister of St. Joseph Campion Bush died May 13, 2013. She was 81 years old.

Sister Bush entered the congregation from her home parish of Our Lady of Lourdes, Elmira, in 1952. She received a bachelor's degree in education in 1960 and a bachelor's degree in history in 1965, both from Nazareth College in Pittsford. In...

Sister of Mercy Mary Edwina Butler, who with four other sisters founded Notre Dame High School in Elmira, died on Dec. 27, 2017. She was 102 years old.

Sister Butler entered the congregation in 1932 and professed her final vows in 1938. She earned a bachelor's degree in French with a minor in Latin from Nazareth...

Sister of Mercy Susan Cain (formerly Sister Mary Catherine), who served the poor for many years as director of Steuben County Rural Ministry in Canisteo, died May 6, 2019. She was 81 years old.

Sister Cain entered the congregation on Sept. 1, 1957, after graduating from Notre Dame High School in Elmira. She earned...

Sister of St. Joseph Sienna Cameron, who served in education, social ministry and communications, died Jan. 10, 2025. She was 91 years old.

Sister Cameron entered the congregation from her home parish of St. James, Irondequoit. She earned a bachelor's degree in education in 1961 from Nazareth College.

She taught...

Deacon James Carra, a longtime member of St. Catherine of Siena Parish in Mendon, died Oct. 30, 2023. He was 75.

"He was a bright light," remarked Father Robert Bourcy, pastor at St. Catherine of Siena and Pittsford's Church of the Transfiguration.

A veteran of the Vietnam War, Deacon Carra served for more than 15...

Sister of Mercy Mary Esther Carstater died March 12, 2019. She was 87 years old.

Sister Carstater entered the congregation from Sacred Heart Parish in Jamestown in 1949. She graduated from Catholic High School in Elmira, where she was influenced by Sister Mary Joachim Pearson to consider a religious vocation.

She...

Sister of Mercy Janet Caufield died on Feb. 21, 2010. She was 84.

Sister Caufield entered the congregation in 1947 from St. Monica Parish in Rochester, professing her perpetual vows on Aug. 24, 1953.

For 16 years, she taught at St. Louis, Pittsford; St. Vincent DePaul, Corning; and St. Mary, Bath. Beginning in...

Sister of St. Joseph Francis Cecilia English died on April 1, 2011. She was 95 years old.

Sister English entered the congregation from her home parish of St. Anthony of Padua, Syracuse, in 1938. She graduated from Nazareth College in Pittsford in 1937 with a bachelor's degree in French, and earned a master's degree...

Daughter of Charity of St. Vincent Sister Ann Paul (Barbara) Chenard, who served in pastoral care in Rochester, died Jan. 30, 2025. She was 96 years old.

A native of Biddeford, Maine, Sister Chenard entered the congregation in Emmitsburg, Md., in July 1947. She earned a bachelor's degree in education from St....

Sister of Mercy Mary Corrine Cimineri died Dec. 21, 2015. She was 98 years old.

Sister Cimineri entered the congregation on Sept. 8, 1934, and professed her final vows on Sept. 21, 1940.

She was a cook at Notre Dame convent and Notre Dame High School in Elmira for 56 years. Before that, she worked in the kitchen...

Bishop Emeritus Matthew H. Clark, shepherd of the Diocese of Rochester for more than 33 years, died Sunday morning, January 22, 2023, at the Sisters of St. Joseph Motherhouse in Pittsford. He was 85 years old.

"Bishop Clark was one of the finest and most well-rounded individuals I have ever known: loving,...

Deacon Thomas Cleary, a permanent deacon in the Diocese of Rochester for the past 30 years, died March 18, 2021, at Crest Manor Living & Rehabilitation Center in Fairport. He was 89 years old.

A Bronx native, Deacon Cleary attended St. John's University in New York City and served as an accountant for Lybrand Ross...

Sister of St. Joseph Irma Coccia died March 12, 2015, at the age of 93.

She entered the congregation in 1941 from her home parish, St. Anthony of Padua in Rochester. She completed Nazareth Normal School in 1944 and received a B.A. in English and social studies in 1955 from Nazareth College.

Sister Coccia began her...

Msgr. George A. Cocuzzi, who performed a broad range of ministries in his 53 years as a diocesan priest, died Aug. 27, 2002, at Rochester General Hospital following a long illness. He was 78 years old. Msgr. Cocuzzi, a Rochester native, grew up in St. Patrick's Cathedral Parish. He attended St. Andrew's and St....

School Sister of Notre Dame Mary Joselia Colbert died Jan. 28, 2013, at Lourdes Health Care Center in Wilton, Conn. She was 88 years old. Sister Joselia specialized in music, drama, history and government during the course of her career and served in five states along the East Coast.

Born Mary Therese Colbert, the...

Sister of St. Joseph Joseph Anne Collins died Jan. 18, 2019. She was 89 years old.

Sister Collins entered the congregation in 1948 from her home parish of St. Joseph, Weedsport. She earned an El. T.T. in 1952 and a bachelor's in education in 1957 from Nazareth College.

She taught at Immaculate Conception, Ithaca;...

Sister of St. Joseph Elizabeth Conheady died May 19, 2016. She was 88 years old.

She entered the congregation in 1957 from her home parish of the Church of the Assumption, Fairport. She earned a physical-education degree from Cortland State Teachers' College, now known as SUNY Cortland, in 1949. She completed a...

School Sister of Notre Dame Joan Connelly (formerly Sister Mary Thomas Villanova) died on March 21, 2014, at Lourdes Health Care Center in Wilton, Conn. She was 79 years old.

She grew up in Rhode Island and Maryland and studied for one year at Rhode Island College of Education before entering the congregation in...

Father Gerald T. Connor passed away Dec. 7, 2012, at the age of 84.

A Rochester native, Father Connor attended Sacred Heart Cathedral Parish as a child before entering St. Andrew's Seminary in Rochester in 1942. After completing his studies at St. Andrew's followed by St. Bernard's Seminary in Rochester, he was...

Sister of St. Joseph Karen Considine died Aug. 14, 2016. She was 93 years old.

She entered the congregation in 1941 from her home parish of Holy Rosary, Rochester. She earned a bachelor's degree in nursing from Nazareth College in 1947 and completed a master's of nursing education from St. Louis University in...

Father John J. Cosmic, a permanent deacon in the Diocese of Rochester for three years before becoming a priest for his native Diocese of Ogdensburg, died May 7, 2017, at Vianney Hall of the Sisters of St. Joseph Motherhouse in Watertown. He was 94 years old.

Father Cosmic was born in Deferiet, N. Y. He served in...

Sister of St. Joseph Marion Patricia Costello, 93, died at the congregation's motherhouse on May 21, 2003.

Sister Costello entered the congregation from St. Patrick Cathedral Parish in 1927 and received bachelor's degrees from Geneseo State Teachers College and Nazareth College and a master's degree from LaValle...

Sister of Mercy Mary Howard Cowan, a registered nurse for 70 years, died Jan. 3, 2021. She was 97.

Sister Cowan attended Holy Family parish and school in Auburn and entered the congregation in 1946, professing perpetual vows six years later.

She graduated from St. Mary's Hospital in Rochester in 1951 and worked in...

Sister Mary Ellen Cragan, who died Oct. 3, 2006, at the age of 80, spent most of her 62 years as a Sister of St. Joseph as teacher, principal and pastoral assistant.

She joined the congregation in 1944 from St. Patrick Parish in Corning and earned bachelor's degrees in education, English and history at Nazareth...

Sister St. Joseph Creighton, SSJ, died April 27, 2005, at the Sisters of St. Joseph motherhouse. She was 95.

Following her entrance into the congregation from St. Patrick Parish in Elmira, Sister Creighton studied nursing and received her RN license from St. Joseph Hospital, Elmira. She later earned an anesthetist...