The Provincial Office staff has recently learned of the passing of a member of an English-speaking Conference province, as well as two Franciscan sisters.
Venard (Alphonse) Kommer, OFM, a member of Sacred Heart Province, died on March 2 in Hinsdale, Illinois. He was 99 years old. The native of Germany entered the Order in 1940 and was ordained into the priesthood six years later. He served in a wide range of ministries during his many decades as a friar – including pastoral work at parishes in Illinois and Michigan, hospital chaplain, seminary administrator, and high school educator. Until failing health resulted in his transfer to a skilled nursing care facility in late 2019, he was the friar in-residence at Notre Dame Parish of Clarendon Hills, Illinois, where he had previously served as senior associate pastor for 16 years.
Sr. Annie Frances Oman, OSF, died in Assisi House in Aston, Pennsylvania, on Feb. 29 at the age of 92. Born in Drumcondra, County Dublin, Ireland, she was a professed member of the Sisters of St. Francis of Philadelphia for 71 years. After entering the congregation in 1946 and professing her first vows in 1949, she worked primarily in education and pastoral care in Maryland, Delaware, Washington State, California and Oregon – where she served as a teacher and principal at elementary and high schools. She also worked in pastoral ministry at hospitals in California and Washington before moving in 2016 to Assisi House, the congregation’s retirement residence, where she served in prayer and hospitality ministry until her passing.
Sr. Jean Moore, FSPA, died on March 3 in La Crosse, Wisconsin. She was 67 years old. At the time of her death, the Chuquicamata, Chile, native was in her 37th year of religious profession. Education and Saints Francis and Clare were central to her ministries as a member of the congregation of Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration. She taught Spanish at the higher education level in Nebraska and Wisconsin, and also held various administrative positions. She served as a pilgrimage leader for the Franciscan Pilgrimage Programs, leading hundreds of pilgrims through Rome and Assisi. Her ministries also included retreat leader and mentor at a Wisconsin federal prison. Among her many degrees was a master’s in Franciscan studies from St. Bonaventure University in Allegany, N.Y.
Editor’s note: Each month, HNP Today publishes news of the deaths of Franciscan brothers, priests, and sisters. Information should be emailed to the HNP Communications Office.
– Compiled by Jocelyn Thomas
Related
- “Mourning the Deaths of Franciscans” – Feb. 11, 2020, HNP Today