Remembering Sr. Joan Canfield, DW, DW (Sr. Katherine of Montfort), 86, December 27, 1935 – June 15, 2022, 66 Years Professed
Friends of the Daughters of Wisdom, we are saddened to report the passing of Sr. Joan Elizabeth Canfield, DW. Sister was 86 years old and 66 years professed. She went home to God peacefully on June 15, 2022, at Good Samaritan Hospital, where she was one of the first nurses in 1959 and had a residence on the 9th floor. Sr. Joan was thrilled to be recognized as a founding Sister at the recent ground-breaking ceremony for the Hospital's latest expansion.
Born in Jamaica, New York, to Katherine and Sylvester Canfield, she entered the Daughters of Wisdom from St. Martha's parish in Uniondale, New York, on February 1, 1954. She made her First Profession on August 2, 1955, and her Final Vows on August 2, 1960. Sr. Joan attended Our Lady of Wisdom Academy, Ozone Park, NY (1950-1954), and Maryview Hospital of Nursing, Portsmouth, VA (1955-1958). She attended the University of Maryland in College Park, MD, from 1980-to 1984, receiving her BSN in Nursing.
Sr. Joan served as a nurse at many different hospitals throughout her career, caring for patients with the utmost compassion, knowledge, and wisdom. She began as a student/nurse at Maryview Hospital in Portsmouth, VA, from 1955-1959. Her first official nursing assignment was as a staff nurse at Good Samaritan Hospital, West Islip, NY, from 1959-1968, then as Staff Nurse at Holy Family Hospital in Brooklyn, NY, from 1968-69. She returned to Good Samaritan Hospital in 1969 and stayed until 1972, when she went to Kings County Hospital in Brooklyn, NY, for a year. After six months at Brookdale Hospital in Brooklyn, NY, she was a staff nurse at Memorial Sloane Kettering, New York, NY, from 1973-1974. Afterward, she served as a staff nurse for the Nursing Sisters (CIJ) in Brooklyn, NY, from 1974-1978. In 1978, she relocated to Washington, DC, and served as a staff nurse/student at Visiting Nurse Association/VM in Washington, DC, and in Maryland until 1984. She then relocated to North Carolina and served as a staff nurse at Edge Comb City, in Tarboro until 1987. She then relocated to Milford, CT, and served as a Visiting Nurse (VNA) staff nurse until 1988. From 1988-2000 she was a nurse for Registered Visiting Nursing in Hamden, CT. In her retirement years, she served as a volunteer nurse for St. Rita's Parish in Hamden, CT, and at the Americares Free Clinic of Bridgeport, CT.
Sr. Joan also volunteered at Yale New Haven Hospital, New Haven, CT, at Interfaith Volunteers in Hamden, CT, and the Parish at St. Mary in East Islip, NY, after relocating to Long Island, NY
In recent years, Sr. Joan resided in Oakdale, NY, with Sr. Catherine Sheehan, DW, with whom she lived in community for 35 years. Her former communities of residence include Hamden, CT, Greenville, NC, Washington, DC, Marlborough Road, Brooklyn, NY, 89th St., Canarsie, NY, West Islip, NY, Good Samaritan Hospital, West Islip, NY, and Portsmouth, VA.
Sr. Joan is survived by her sister, Candida Canfield, brother-in-law Doug Goldblum, nephew Daniel Berman, wife Kimberly, and their children Linnea and Camilla. Sister was predeceased by her brother Volney and sister Alice Kulis.
We remember Sr. Joan through the joyful times in her life that she shared with us on the occasion of her 60th Jubilee in 2016:
"Pope Francis has dedicated this year to Consecrated Life. It is a great year to be celebrating my 60th anniversary. I look back at these years with gratitude for all that has been. As I reflected on these words so many things came to me from the past … Maryview, Good Samaritan, Washington, North Carolina, Connecticut, two trips to Ireland. But what stands out for me was going to Rome and France for the Beatification of Marie Louise. What a joy to be chosen to go! I share with you those memories for which I am so grateful … meeting Sr. Mary Antoinette's sister and brother-in-law at the airport, arriving in Rome, the bus ride to the retreat center where we were 400 or so Sisters from all over the world, riding back and forth to Rome and sharing stories with them and also meeting Fr. Testrat. The day of the beatification Sr. Mary Stuart and I got tickets in the third row. We could see the altar so clearly … Sr. Barbara O'Dea reading the epistle, Sr. Ines bringing up the gifts to the Pope, the unveiling of the banner of Marie Louise … being part of the crowd when the Pope came to the window … then the trip to Ste. Laurent … the joy of going again after 33 years from my final profession. It is hard to put all this on one page. This was for me a great gift and blessing. It gave me a real sense of what it means to belong to an international community. How grateful I am to Wisdom-Sophia for this and for meeting so many Daughters of Wisdom from many different countries. Deo Gratias!"
Joan Canfield, D.W.
Donations in Sr. Joan's memory can be made by clicking here.