WILLIAMSVILLE, N.Y.—Sister Juliana Whitefield, a sister of St. Francis for 61 years, died on May 1 in St. Mary of the Angels Health Center. She was 87.
The Mass of Christian Burial will be held May 6 at 10:30 a.m. at St. Mary of the Angels Convent in Williamsville.
Sister Juliana, also known as Sister M. Agnes Michele, was born on Feb. 12, 1929, and raised in Tonawanda, N.Y. She is the daughter of the late Henry A. and Caroline Hugger Whitefield; and sister of the late Dorothy Griffin, and Richard, Robert and Marie Whitefield.
After entering the Community of the Sisters of St. Francis, Sister Juliana earned a bachelor’s degree at Medaille College and a master’s from Niagara University.
She served in the Diocese of Charleston, S.C., for 19 years, where she worked in religious education and as the school librarian at St. Anthony of Padua School in Greenville. She was famous for neighborhood encounters that resulted in lasting friendships.
Sister Juliana also served for 38 years as a junior high teacher and principal at various schools in the Diocese of Buffalo, including Infant of Prague, Most Holy Redeemer and Our Lady Help of Christians in Cheektowaga; St. Mary’s in Swormville; Queen of Heaven in Ebenezer; Sacred Heart in Bowmansville; Nativity in Harris Hill; and St. James in Buffalo.
From 2007 until the present, Sister Juliana lived and served in her community at St. Mary of the Angels.
She is survived by nieces and nephews.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Sisters of St. Francis of the Neumann Communities.
