Sister Frances Viola, O.P. (formerly Sister Mary Rachel), passed away on the night of Jan. 17. She served as a Sister of St. Dominic for more than 70 years. She was 94 years old.

Fran, the daughter of Natale and Anna Persico Viola, was raised in Brooklyn along with her sister Grace and her brother Donald. She worked for several years as a nursery school teacher before joining the Dominican Sisters.

On Sept. 12, 1953, she entered the novitiate at Amityville from her home parish, St. Finbar, Brooklyn. She was clothed in the Dominican habit on Aug. 4, 1954, and given her religious name, Sister Mary Rachel. On Aug. 8, 1955, she professed her vows.

Sister Frances received a Bachelor of Arts in psychology from Molloy College (now Molloy University), Rockville Centre, New York, and a Master of Science in pastoral counseling from St. John’s University, Jamaica.

Fran’s early ministry was in elementary education at St. Thomas the Apostle, Woodhaven, New York, and St. Boniface, Elmont, New York. She then transitioned into pastoral services at St. Patrick, Huntington, New York, where she ministered for more than four decades.

Her many responsibilities included ministering in the parish outreach office, training Eucharistic ministers, and giving at-home retreats. Through her ministries, Fran touched the lives of countless people.
During her years at St. Patrick’s, Fran lived in several places, including the parish convent, the Formation Community in the Motherhouse in Amityville, and the local community in Kings Park, New York.

Since 2012, Fran has been part of the Carlin Hall Community in Amityville. Sisters who lived with Fran remember her as an involved and willing member of the local community and equally involved in the life of the congregation. The wake and Mass of Christian Burial took place on Jan. 23 at the Motherhouse.

Interment followed in St. Dominic Cemetery on the Motherhouse grounds.