Joanne “Catherine Rose” Miller

Sister Joanne (Catherine Rose) Miller, SNDdeN remembers feeling curious about religious life as an eighth grader at Ascension School in Los Angeles. An opportunity to observe a clothing ceremony with Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondolet is one of her core memories. Sister Joanne recalls, “It was a pretty impressive ceremony in those days with so many young postulants dressed as brides, then, during the ceremony leaving the chapel to return in those awesome black habits and the white veils of novices.”

When her family moved north to Santa Clara, she was enrolled at Notre Dame High School in San Jose.  There, Sister Mary Emmanuel was a significant influence. “Sister Mary Emmanuel saw something in me that I couldn’t see yet,” she says. “It was as if they were planting a seed and it needed time to grow. Something was nudging me, and the influence of these Sisters gradually made it clear.” 

That seed has blossomed into 75 years of religious life. Sister Joanne taught and administered in Notre Dame schools from Los Angeles to Seattle to Honolulu. She especially cherished her time teaching the boys at Mission Dolores School in San Francisco. “That experience surely taught me how to teach!” she says. She also served as parish secretary at St. Francis Xavier in Seaside, as executive secretary for the former California Province, as principal of Notre Dame School in Santa Barbara and later as a teacher at Our Lady of Mt. Carmel in Santa Barbara. She also spent years on staff at La Casa de María, a retreat center in Santa Barbara. 

Sister Joanne’s ministry has always reflected her hope for a Church that is welcoming of all people—immigrant workers in Carpinteria’s flower fields, her gay nephews and women seeking fuller equality. “There have been few dramatic moments in my life,” she says. “Just this gradual pathway that now calls me to be of support to so many people.” 

Her community remembers her balance of prayer, ministry and play. She especially loves card games and watching the Los Angeles Lakers play basketball. 

“I am grateful for the many blessings, the nudges and surprises I have received as a Sister of Notre Dame de Namur,” Sister Joanne reflects. “I am also grateful for the wonderful women who have journeyed with me and helped me stretch and grow. And last, but not least, I cherish the love and support I have always received from my family.” 

Now living at the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur Province Center in Belmont, California, Sister Joanne continues to share her joyful spirit, love of community and enduring trust in God’s goodness.  

“I love the Sisters of Notre Dame,” she says. “There have been rough times in my life and they were there for me. These days it is so good to be part of a community that cares deeply about what is going on in our world – from global warming and poverty, to cultural diversity and peace-making. This can only lead to new life among us. We have to have faith and trust in the future.”

Updated in 2025 

Sister Joanne Miller, SNDdeN’s 80th birthday party with her sister-in-law, Zada, her nephews and a great niece.