In Memoriam: Sister Cecilia Haley, SC

“Sister Cecilia will be remembered by her students for her kindness and patience, and for her devotion in helping them learn to the best of their abilities.”

Sister Cecilia Haley (Catherine) was born December 11, 1917 in Staten Island. She was one of three children, two boys and one girl, of James and Anne Johnston Haley. Catherine attended Immaculate Conception School and Saint Joseph Hill Academy and worked for three years before entering the Sisters of Charity of New York on September 8, 1938. Sister Cecilia received a BA in History from the College of Mount Saint Vincent and an MS in Social Studies from Richmond Community College.

Most of Sister Cecilia’s ministry was spent in elementary education, where she taught almost every grade. In Manhattan, Sister taught at Our Lady of Good Counsel, Incarnation, Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Holy Name, and Sacred Heart. Sister Cecilia also taught in Saint Monica, Queens; Saint Joseph, Yonkers; Saints Peter and Paul, Bronx; and Sacred Heart, Staten Island. In 1971, Sister Cecilia was sent to teach Social Studies at Saint Joseph by-the-Sea High School, where she stayed until 1982. She then went to Saint Patrick Villa in Nanuet for four years. In 1986 she became part of the Administrative Team at the Convent of Mary the Ocean Star in Ventnor. In 1993, Sister Cecilia returned to Saint Patrick Villa where she lived until 2007. She then moved to the Convent of Mary the Queen and continued her ministry of prayer, service and witness. In 2014, Sister Cecilia was among the first group of sisters to move to Schervier Nursing Care Center in the Bronx.

Sister Cecilia will be remembered by her students for her kindness and patience, and for her devotion in helping them learn to the best of their abilities. She had a wonderful sense of humor, a generous heart, and a welcoming spirit. We rejoice with her now as she enters into the arms of our loving God whom she served so long and so well as a Sister of Charity. Rest in peace, Sister Cecilia.