Sr. Catherine Mary Kane, OSF, Sept. 9, 1938–Jan. 29, 2026

ALLEGANY — Sr. Catherine Mary Kane, OSF, died Thursday (Jan. 29, 2026) at St. Elizabeth Motherhouse in Allegany.

She was born Susanne Rose Kane on Sept. 9, 1938, in Phoenixville, Pa. the daughter of Joseph and Catherine Foley Kane.

Sister Catherine Mary Kane transferred to the Franciscan Sisters of Allegany on June 13, 1980, and professed her final religious as an Allegany Franciscan on October 4, 1983. Prior to this transfer, Catherine had been a faithful vowed member for 24 years in the Congregation of the Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary (IHM) in Immaculata, Pa., in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.

Catherine continued to live joyfully her call as a Franciscan Woman Religious for an additional 45 years, reflecting God’s love and mercy to all with whom she came in contact.

She graduated from St. Ann School in Phoenixville in 1952 and Hallahan Catholic High School in Philadelphia in 1956. She received her bachelor’s degree in Latin from Immaculata College in 1971 and her master’s degree in religious studies from St. Charles Seminary, Philadelphia, in 1978.

Her main ministry was in the field of education on all levels — elementary, high school and adult education in schools in Pennsylvania, New York and New Jersey.  In 1994, Catherine used her religious studies background and became a director of religious education (DRE) in parishes in the Diocese of Camden, N.J.

She retired in 2016 in Millville, N.J., and this free time became an opportunity to provide outreach to the poor and marginalized in the area.

In 2021, Catherine was warmly welcomed home to St. Elizabeth Motherhouse in Allegany.

She was an avid reader and a lover of animals, so she was often seen in the library signing out a new book or traveling to the SPCA in Hinsdale to spend the afternoon caring for the abandoned animals.  She was a true follower of St. Francis!

She is survived by her brother, Joseph and his wife, Mariellen; and her cousin, Sr. Doris Kane, IHM.

Sister Catherine is predeceased by her parents, Joseph and Catherine Kane.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 10:30 a.m. Wednesday (Feb. 4, 2026) in the Chapel of St. Elizabeth Motherhouse. Burial will be in St. Bonaventure Cemetery at a future date.

Funeral arrangements are under the direction of Letro-McIntosh-Spink Funeral Home, Inc., 646 E. State St., Olean.