Sister Constance’s motivation in ministry was to respond to where she heard cries for justice while her contemplative side delighted in observing color in nature and her surroundings.
Sister Constance Marie Kelly, formerly Sister Marian Bernard, was born November 2, 1937, in Staten Island, one of three children, one daughter and two sons of Bernard and Marion McCormack Kelly. Constance attended Saint Peter Elementary and Saint Peter High School, Staten Island, before entering the Sisters of Charity of New York on September 8, 1955. She earned a BA in Latin from the College of Mount Saint Vincent, an MA in Latin from Hunter College, and an MS in Pastoral Ministry from Fordham University.
Sister Constance’s fifty-two years of active service were in the areas of education and pastoral ministry. Her thirteen years of teaching were in the elementary grades of Saint Charles Borromeo in Brooklyn and Saint Margaret of Cortona in the Bronx and as a teacher of Latin at Saint Raymond Academy for Girls in the Bronx. In 1971, Sister Constance’s thirty-seven years in pastoral ministry began with missionary service in Santiago, Chile. After four years, she returned to the United States to work with Father John Flynn in Saint Francis of Assisi Church in the Bronx.
Sister Constance returned to missionary work in Guatemala for fourteen years in the Departments (States) of Sololá and San Marcos. On her return to New York, her pastoral ministry continued with the Hispanic community of Saint Peter of Alcantara Church in Port Washington. She saw the need to build bridges among the various Latino groups and between them and the non-Latino community. In recognition of her work, she was honored as a Woman of Distinction in Port Washington.
In 2010, Sister Constance retired from active ministry and lived at Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Manhattan, developing bonds with the long-time Italian parishioners and the recently arrived Hispanic community. In 2022, she became a resident of Cabrini of Westchester. She died on June 10, 2023 at Phelps Hospital in Sleepy Hollow, New York, in the sixty-eighth year of commitment as a Sister of Charity of New York.
Sister Constance, known best as Sister Connie, had an uncomplicated approach to life. She saw events working out in God’s own time and moved with the new direction in which they led. Her motivation in ministry was to respond to where she heard cries for justice while her contemplative side delighted in observing color in nature and her surroundings.
Sister Connie, the Congregation Constitution states, “We are called … to be women of healing, sensitive to the wounds of persons and to the systemic evils of our times.” You answered this call with selfless response to needs both near and far. May the work of your hands endure, and the gracious care of our God rest upon you.
Date of Death
June 10, 2023
Age
85
Wake
Monday, June 19, 2023 8:00-9:00 a.m.
Prayer Service at 8:30 a.m.
Flynn Memorial Home 1652 Central Park Avenue Yonkers, NY 10710
Live Streaming begins at 8:30 a.m.: venue.streamspot.com/d286a8ab
Funeral
Monday, June 19, 2023 9:45 a.m.
St. Margaret of Cortona Church
6000 Riverdale Avenue Bronx, NY 10471
Live Streaming begins at 9:45 a.m.: venue.streamspot.com/217aa3db
Burial
Mount Saint Vincent Cemetery Date to be determined.
Missions
Archdiocese of New York /Chile/Guatemala
- St. Charles Borromeo, Brooklyn, 1958-63, Teacher
- St. Margaret of Cortona, Bronx, 1963-66, Teacher
- St. Raymond Academy, Bronx, 1966-71, Teacher
- Santiago, Chile, 1971-75, Missionary Work
- St. Francis of Assisi, Bronx, 1976-81, Pastoral Minister
- El Novillero-Depto, Solola, Guatemala, 1981-86, Missionary Work
- San Cristobal Cucho Parish, San Marcos, Guatemala, 1986-95, Pastoral Ministers
- St. Peter of Alcantara, Port Washington, 1996-2010, Hispanic Ministry
May sister rip.
May Sister Connie rest in Eternal Peace. God bless her.
Rest in Peace Sister a good and faithful servant
Saint of Jesus Christ, please pray for us.
Thank you for sharing the beautiful life of this remarkable woman, Sister Constance Marie Kelly. What a gift she was to the world — bringing love and justice to all.
Rest In Peace, Sister Constance.
Sister Connie had a remarkable impact on my education and vocation. She was my teacher at St. Raymond Academy for Girls (1967-1971) Her missionary spirit and compassionate desire to serve those less fortunate, was evidenced in the ways she challenged us go beyond ourselves. I am deeply grateful to have shared in her journey.
I am certain Father Flynn is welcoming home….blessings.
I remember Sr. Marian Bernard fondly from my years at Sr. Raymond Academy. A gentle soul who led a life of dedicated service. May she rest in peace!
Many of us, who graduated in 1970, lucked out and had Sr. Bernie (as we called her) as our homeroom and latin class teacher while at SRA. I only have very fond memories of her and how she made a so called dead language come alive for us. I learned more than just latin from her and will be always so grateful for the education she gave us.
I am flooded with memories. We met in Santiago, Chile in 1975, worked together in the South Bronx Vicariate and with South Bronx People for Change in the late 1970s and 80s, and I visited you in Solala and San Cristobal Cucho, Guatemala…all powerful experiences. I wish you had lived to see the book, I Surrender: A Memoir of Chile’s Dictatorship, that I wrote about our fateful experiences in Chile in 1975. Orbis Books will release it on August 18, 2023.
You lived a caring and generous life, may you now rest in peace.