Rochester - Sr. Rosemary St. Peter, SSJ

Sister Rosemary St. Peter (formerly Sister William Mary) died July 20, 2026. She was 97 years old.

Sister St. Peter entered the Sisters of St. Joseph from Holy Rosary Parish in Rochester. At the time of her 75th jubilee in 2023, she looked back on her call to religious life: "The call to religious life, just as the call to every other vocation, requires me to be faithful to a life of prayer. Each day I ask for God's continued grace to be faithful to that call and to the daily call to serve Christ in those who cross my path."

Sister St. Peter dedicated her early years as a Sister of St. Joseph to the ministry of education. She taught at St. Joseph's School; Wayland, St. Mary, Canandaigua; Blessed Sacrament, Rochester; and St. John the Evangelist, Greece. Shen also served as principal at St. Patrick, Seneca Falls; St. Ambrose, Rochester; and Holy Trinity, Webster. She then assumed leadership roles for the Sisters of St. Joseph, first as a councilor, then as president of the congregation.

When she completed her years of service as president, Bishop Matthew H. Clark spoke to his experience of her in that role: "For the past 16 years, Sister Rosemary has served her congregation in a leadership position -- first for eight years as councilor and then for eight years as president. As I think about my experience of her during those years, I realize that I have met few individuals during the course of my life who are as loving and kind as Sister Rosemary is. And I mean a convicted love and strong kindness she expresses even in situations that might test the patience of most of us. I thank Rosemary for the witness of her faith along the way, and for the always constructive and helpful ways in which she served and represented her congregation to our local church."

Sister St. Peter was predeceased by her parents, William and Mary; and her siblings and their spouses, William, Wilma (Thomas) St. John, Norma (Patrick) Magoffin and Mary Ann (Richard) Kraft.

She is survived by her beloved nieces and nephews, Rosemary St. John Tonkery, Cathy St. John Hawley, David (Marybeth) Magoffin, Joseph Magoffin, Nancy Magoffin Steward, Norma Magoffin (Robert) Rendsland and Richard Kraft; and her grand- and great-grand nieces and nephews.

Sister St. Peter's calling hours will be July 24, 2026, at 10 a.m. followed by a funeral Mass at 11 a.m. at the SSJ Motherhouse, 150 French Road, Pittsford. The funeral Mass will be livestreamed at youtube.com/SSJSroch. Interment will follow at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery in Rochester.

Contributions in her memory may be made to the Sisters of St. Joseph, 150 French Road, Rochester, NY 14618, or online at www.ssjrochester.org/donate.