Sister Donalda Kehoe, OSF

Kehoe Donalda

Sister Donalda (Rosemary) Kehoe died February 5, 2022 at the age of 95.

The Mass of Christian Burial will be held at the Clare House Chapel, Mount St. Francis Center at 1:00 p.m. Thursday, February 10, 2022. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, guests may participate via livestream at: www.youtube.com/dubuquefranciscans

Rosemary, daughter of the late Joseph and Rose (Schwendinger) Kehoe, was born February 3, 1927 in Epworth, Iowa.  She was baptized at St. Patrick’s in Epworth and confirmed at St. Mary’s in Waterloo, Iowa. She entered the Sisters of St. Francis in Dubuque from St. Mary’s on August 25, 1945. She was received with the name Sister Mary Donalda on August 12, 1946 and made her final profession of vows on August 12, 1951.

Sister received her bachelor’s degree in education at Loras College, Dubuque. She ministered as an educator in Iowa at Sacred Heart, Dubuque; Ossian; Fillmore; and St. Mary of the Woods in Edgebrook, Illinois. Other missions included Xavier Hospital, Dubuque; St. Mary’s Hospital, Emporia, Kansas; Briar Cliff College, Sioux City, Iowa; Tulsa, Oklahoma; Muskogee, Oklahoma; Ketchikan, Alaska; and The Witness Newspaper at the Archdiocesan Office in Dubuque. 

Sister is survived by her nieces, nephews, and Franciscan sisters.

Sister was preceded in death by her parents; her sisters, Evelyn (Harold) Junk and Ione (Alphonse) Bernardy; her brothers, John (Eunice) Kehoe, Lawrence (Majel) Kehoe, James Kehoe, Charles (Bernadette) Kehoe, Donald Kehoe, and an infant brother Joe Kehoe.