Sister Anne brought her enthusiastic spirit and personal warmth to the hundreds of students she greeted each day and to the families whose joys and sorrows she willingly embraced.
Sister Anne, formerly Sister Joseph Marian, was born April 25, 1936, in the Bronx. She was one of eight children, three daughters and five sons of James and Elizabeth Purcell O’Connell. Anne attended grades 1–6 at Our Lady of Angels School in the Bronx and grades 7–12 at Saint Walburga Academy in Manhattan. Her sister, Mary, was a religious of the Society of the Holy Child Jesus who staffed the Academy.
After graduation, Anne entered the Sisters of Charity of New York on September 8, 1954. Her sister, Ellen Rose, entered the Congregation in 1962. Sister Joseph received a BS in Biology from the College of Mount Saint Vincent and an MS in Biology from the College of Saint Rose in Albany. She was certified by New York State as a teacher of Biology and General Science.
Sister Anne dedicated 54 years of active ministry to education on the elementary and high school levels. Her first missions in elementary grades were at Saint Joseph in Manhattan and Elizabeth Seton Academy in the Bronx.
With her degree in science, Sister Anne taught biology and chemistry, along with religion, at the Academy of the Resurrection in Rye, the Academy of Mount Saint Vincent at Tuxedo Park, and Cardinal Spellman High School in the Bronx. She returned to elementary education at Nativity of Our Blessed Lady in the Bronx, participating in the departmental instruction for the upper grades. At the end of 10 years, she moved to Saint Joseph in Florida, New York, to teach the upper grades.
For the last 17 years of ministry, Sister Anne brought the experiences of her previous 37 years of education to the position of School Utilization Coordinator for Instructional Television in the Archdiocese of New York.
In 2012, Sister Anne retired and devoted her volunteer service to the Hispanic community of Saint Peter Church in Yonkers, where she lived for 22 years. Among the parish activities, she sang in the choir, helped in the soup kitchen, hosted a weekly prayer group, and made home visits.
In 2016, Sister Anne joined the retirement community at Mount Saint Vincent Convent and, in 2020, moved to the Kittay Senior Apartments in the Bronx. Sister Anne died February 13, 2022, in the 68th year of commitment as a Sister of Charity of New York.
Sister Anne brought her enthusiastic spirit and personal warmth to the hundreds of students she greeted each day and to the families whose joys and sorrows she willingly embraced. It surprised no one to see her running a three-legged race on school field day or dancing the polka at a church party. A trip to Our Lady’s shrine in Medjugorje in 1995 was a deep-felt blessing in her life.
Sister Anne, you have proclaimed the Gospel well in your life of service to the people of the Church of New York. A loving God waits to welcome you into the fullness of love reserved for all eternity. Go forth in peace. Thanks be to God!
Date of Death
February 13, 2022
Age
85
Wake
Thursday, February 17, 2022
8–9:00 a.m.
Prayer Service at 8:30 a.m.
Flynn Memorial Home
1652 Central Park Avenue
Yonkers, New York 10710
Streaming begins at 9:30 a.m.: https://venue.streamspot.com/d286a8ab
Funeral
Thursday, February 17, 2022
9:45 a.m.
St. Margaret of Cortona Church
6000 Riverdale Avenue
Bronx, NY 10471
Live Streaming begins at 9:45 a.m.: https://venue.streamspot.com/217aa3db
Burial
St. Joseph Cemetery
Yonkers, NY
Missions
Archdiocese of New York
- St. Joseph Academy, Manhattan
1957–58, Teacher, Gr. 4 - Elizabeth Seton Academy, Bronx
1958–63, Teacher, Gr. 5 - Academy of Resurrection, Rye
1963–66, Teacher, Religion, Biology, Chemistry - Academy of Mt. St. Vincent, Tuxedo Park
1966–68, Teacher, Religion, Biology, Chemistry, Health, Resident Supv. - Cardinal Spellman HS, Bronx
1968–71, Teacher, Chemistry - Nativity of Our Blessed Lady, Bronx
1971–81, Teacher, Gr. 6 - St. Joseph, Florida, NY
1981–94, Teacher, Gr. 6 - Instructional Television (ITV), Dunwoodie
1994–2011, Coord/School Utilization, Program Dir. - St. Peter Parish, Yonkers
2012–16, Volunteer
I was blessed to have known Sr.Anne , she always put a smile on my heart. God Bless you,
She was a principal of my school, St. Paul in Valley Cottage, she was such a sweet person, always kind hearted and was patient to all the children and teacherd.
I knew her as Sister Joseph Marian at the Academy of Mount Saint Vincent. She was our biology teacher and was terrific. I loved her, and oh, those dimples!
I also had sister as a teacher at the Academy of Mt. St. Vincent. She was one of the most joyful women I have met in my life, and she helped me love Science. Every day she enthusiastically entered the classroom full of energy and the desire to share her love of Science. May she rest in peace.
Sr Marian was a lovely lady and my teacher at the Academy of Mt St Vincent. God Bless…
I was Sr. Anne O Connell aide she was a sweet lady may she Rest In Peace
Sr. Anne was the best teacher in the world. I told her she is a Saint . Rest in Peace and Thank you for what you did for us,
Sister Anne was a great teacher to myself ,my sister, Maria and brother, Lorenzo at Nativity School She was so loving and passionate about teaching her students and we learned so much from her. Such sad news. God bless you Sr. Anne and thank you for being there for us especially when my father died suddenly when I was in your class. Rip Sweet Sister Anne. Vittoria Signorile-Tancredi
Sister Anne was my favorite teacher at St. Joseph School in Florida, N.Y. She was strict yet always fair and kind, and enthusiastic about science and nature. Sister Anne was so ahead of her time. As fourth and fifth graders, we were always engaged in hands on activities and completing lab reports. I learned so much.
Sister Anne absolutely loved animals, and she had a hermit crab in her classroom. When he passed away, she taught us about mourning and how to process the loss of a dear pet. We buried his shell under a beautiful pine tree and had a little funeral service. I’ll never forget Sister Anne’s kind blue eyes, beautiful penmanship, and the sense of discipline and wonder she helped instill in me as a young girl. God bless you always and thank you.
It is with great sorrow that I learned today of Sr. Anne’s passing. She was so loving and open to all she met. She was my inspiration to encourage my husband to enroll our son in St. Joseph’s School in Florida where she and the Sisters of Charity taught. Countless times of encouragement and love for life and her Polish Dance group rewarded many students with the joy of Polish dancing and the discipline that went along with the hours of practice outside of a rigorous school learning structure. God bless her for all she has done for not only my family but the world with her generous loving heart. She did so love to smile and laughed often. We will miss that most about her. I know her reward in Heaven will be great.
Thank you for sharing your lovely memories.