Sister Catherine (Agnes St. Jude) Pelletier, a Sister of Notre Dame for 73 years, died peacefully at Mercy Retirement and Care Center in Oakland, where she received kindness and care for the past three years.
“She had a wonderful life!” said her youngest sister, Mary Ann Moore. One of seven children born in Fresno to Mark and Catherine Pelletier, Catherine was born on March 2, 1923 and grew up in Oakland, where her family was involved in St. Cyril Parish. She attended Notre Dame High School in Alameda, and entered the Notre Dame Community in 1943.
Sr. Catherine was happy in her life of service. During her thirty years of elementary school teaching, she taught every grade level, and in several Notre Dame schools, including St. Columbkille in Los Angeles, Our Lady of Mt. Carmel in Redwood City and for ten years, at Holy Family School, in Hawaii. After earning a master of library studies degree from the University of Hawaii, she served as librarian for Notre Dame High School, San Jose, and for eleven years at College of Notre Dame, Belmont. Her library experience contributed to her retirement work of assisting in the Sisters’ Archives.
Always interested in learning, she enjoyed ongoing studies in science, math and history, visiting historical sites and writing interesting articles about the Sisters’ early years in Oregon and California. She especially enjoyed participating in an international St. Julie Conference in the summer of 1992, meeting in Namur, Belgium, with Sisters from all parts of the Notre Dame world.
She died on June 6, 2016. 
Sister Catherine will be lovingly remembered and greatly missed by her remaining sister, Mary Ann Moore, many nieces and nephews, grand-nieces and nephews, former students and colleagues, and her Sisters of Notre Dame.
Mass was celebrated at 10:30 a.m. on Wednesday, June 15, at the Sisters of Notre Dame Province Center in Belmont. She is interred at Mission Cemetery in Santa Clara.
MORE ABOUT SR. CATHERINE, WRITTEN ON THE OCCASION OF HER JUBILEE:
"What are we doing in this world, and why are we here, if not to help our neighbors?" asked Saint Mary Euphrasia Pelletier (Born 1796. Died 1868. Canonized in 1940.*) St. Mary Euphrasia's great-great niece Catherine certainly embodies that understanding of service. It runs in the family.
When asked what it meant to be a Sister of Notre Dame for 70 years, Sr. Catherine Pelletier spoke of many things – the strength of her family, her first day of teaching, her years at Holy Family School in Hawaii – but it was her family that may be the biggest part of what defines her.
Catherine grew up in Oakland, near Mills College, and remembers how her family would gather around the piano and sing at night. Growing up in the Depression clearly had an impact. Sr. Catherine describes how hard her father worked, holding down three part-time jobs, and how her parents paid $1 a month to send their children to St. Joseph's/ Notre Dame in Alameda. She said they almost lost their home, yet described that time as "terrible but wonderful." Despite that adversity –or perhaps because of it-she refers to her mother telling her: "If someone asks you to do something, do it, if you can."
Even now, if you ask Sr. Catherine to do something, she always can, and whatever it is, she does it well. It's the happiness she achieves in service that is so remarkable. Maybe that's what her first day of teaching taught her. In 1945, she was assigned to replace Sr. Editha mid-year, at Junipero Serra School in Carmel. Well that was St. Valentine's Day and Sr. Catherine commented that "Sr. Editha held down the fort until I arrived, but I got all the Valentines." What a sweet start to a life of service!
After 30 years of classroom teaching (including 10 wonderful years at Holy Family School in Honolulu), and a master's of library science from the University of Hawaii, Sr. Catherine transitioned from classroom teacher and school administrator to librarian and archivist. For almost 20 years, she served as librarian to Notre Dame High School, San Jose and then College of Notre Dame, Belmont. Upon retiring, she assisted with Archives for the California Province and, in 2009, when she really retired, she happily said yes to helping out as a receptionist and office assistant for staff projects. Sr. Catherine's life continues to be about answering her great-great aunt's question: Why are we here, if not to help?
Sr. Catherine reflects that "knowing that this is my vocation has kept me going. The rough years made me stronger. It's been a beautiful life."
To be sure, her life of service reflects the charism of St. Julie, but Sr. Catherine also heeds the call to service from St. Mary Euphrasia Pelletier, "If you always love one another, if you always uphold one another, you will be capable of working wonders!"
Working wonders is what Sr. Catherine has always done, as teacher, as librarian, as a Sister and friend.
* St. Mary Euphrasia Pelletier founded the Congregation of Our Lady of Charity of the Good Shepherd in France. She was known for her work with prostitutes and women in danger, and of caring for those who were neglected.
Please share a memory of Sr. Catherine in the comments area below…