Sister Joan Mary Wadsworth, CSJ
February 27, 1936 – January 12, 2008

Doris Wadsworth was blessed with the care of her grandparents as she grew up
in Bird Island, Minnesota. She graduated from St. Mary’s High School in 1954
and entered the Sisters of St. Joseph in September of that year. Six months later
she received the habit and was given her religious name, Sister Joan Mary. She
pronounced her final vows as a Sister of St. Joseph in 1962 and graduated in
1963 from The College of St. Catherine.

In 1957 Joan Mary began a teaching ministry that continued for nearly 30 years.
She taught at St. Paul elementary schools, including St. Pascal Baylon, St.
Gregory, Nativity of Mary, and St. Leo’s. Teaching assignments in the New Ulm
diocese brought her to St. Aloysius in Olivia, Minnesota, St. Mary’s in Bird
Island, Holy Redeemer in Marshall, Minnesota, and John Ireland in St. Peter,
Minnesota. She served as principal at several of these schools. In 1988, Joan
Mary joined Project One-Fifty, a program that provided training and resources
for young teachers. She was a member of the Sisters of St. Joseph Auto Board
for many years and volunteered as a receptionist at Bethany Convent, the retirement
community of the Sisters of St. Joseph.

A very gifted teacher herself, Joan Mary understood another’s vision for new
ways to help children enjoy learning and be successful. She worked with other
teachers to make their dreams into practical teaching strategies. Those who lived
and worked with Joan Mary through the years also remember her unassuming
nature, her easy laughter, and her love for spending time with others to play
cards or enjoy a good meal. They remember her as a loyal and deeply committed
woman who lived simply and loved without measure.