Sister at Our Lady of the Angels Convent in Greenfield dies from COVID-19 complications

GREENFIELD -- One sister at the School Sisters of St. Francis living at Our Lady of the Angels Convent in Greenfield has died from complications of COVID-19, according to officials at the convent.

Four sisters have since tested positive for COVID-19 at the convent.

Sister Marie June Skender

Sister Marie June Skender, 83, died on Tuesday, April 7 and tested positive for COVID-19 in a post-mortem test.

Our Lady of the Angels has been working with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Wisconsin Department of Health Services, the Milwaukee County Health Department, infection control specialists, and the Greenfield Health Department for months to protect sisters and staff against COVID-19; and once the presence of the virus was identified, to prevent further spread.

Our Lady of the Angels

Darren Rausch

"Once a virus like this comes into the facility -- the facility has done a great job isolating patients, keeping patients in their room to the extent they can bring food to the rooms," said Darren Rausch, Health Officer, Director at the Greenfield Health Department. "We facilitated some PPE requests, personal protection requests earlier in the week -- and we are told they have what they need."

Our Lady of the Angels is a co-sponsored ministry of the School Sisters of St. Francis and the School Sisters of Notre Dame. It is a state-of-the-art home for retired sisters of both communities and offers specialized memory care.

Our Lady of the Angels

Sister Marie June was born in Milwaukee and was a member of the School Sisters of St. Francis for 67 years. She has been a resident of Our Lady of the Angels Convent since 2016.

A graduate of Alverno College, Sister Marie June served as an elementary school teacher, parish and school musician, and pastoral care minister in the diocese of Green Bay and in the archdioceses of Chicago, Minneapolis-St. Paul, and Milwaukee.

A private funeral has been scheduled for April 16. A memorial Mass will be held in St. Joseph Chapel in Milwaukee for sisters, family members, and friends, of Sister Marie June after the danger of COVID-19 has passed and the Archdiocese of Milwaukee once again permits public celebrations of the Eucharist.