Sister Elizabeth Jean Allard, CSJ

Sister Elizabeth Jean Allard, CSJ (Sister Elizabeth John), 94, died Wednesday, November 27, 2019 at St. Joseph’s Provincial House, Latham. She had been a Sister of St. Joseph of Carondelet for the past 75 years.

Sister Elizabeth, the former Theresa Helen Allard, was born in Deferiet, NY, on November 15, 1925, daughter of the late John and Elizabeth Ryan Allard. After graduating from St. John the Baptist Academy, Syracuse, Sister Elizabeth entered the novitiate of the Sisters of St. Joseph in Troy on March 19, 1944 and professed final vows on August 15, 1949.
Sister Elizabeth received a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree in elementary education, both from The College of Saint Rose and later an associate degree in library science from Maria Regina College. For 50 years, Sister Elizabeth taught and served as a librarian in schools of the Albany and Syracuse Dioceses and for three years was a religious-education teacher. For the last eight years of her active ministry, she volunteered at St. John the Baptist Parish, Syracuse where she had also taught for 13 years. In 2007, Sister Elizabeth retired to St. Joseph’s Provincial House.

Sister Elizabeth was a gentle, prayerful woman whose life was marked by devotion and service. During her half-century in the classroom, teaching primarily 7th and 8th grade students, Sister Elizabeth was able to achieve the balance between firmness and fairness, and her natural empathy and quiet humor were ever present to soften the edges. In her interactions in ministry and in community, Sister Elizabeth was gracious, hospitable and kind, always ready with a smile and a thoughtful comment. Like St. Joseph, her patron, Sister Elizabeth was hard-working, faithful and happy to remain in the background, and her presence among us will be dearly missed.
Sister Elizabeth is survived by several nieces and nephews and their families, including her niece, Sister Annette Maria Allard, CSJ; and the Sisters of St. Joseph. In addition to her parents, Sister Elizabeth was predeceased by two brothers, Charles and William Allard; and by four sisters, Marie Dingman, Sister Dorothy Bernadette Allard, Betty Young and Kate Kinney.
Sister Elizabeth’s wake will be held in the chapel of St. Joseph's Provincial House, Latham, on Thursday, December 5, from 4-7 p.m. with the prayer service at 7 p.m. The Mass of Christian Burial will be held in the chapel of the Provincial House on Friday, December 5, at 11:00 a.m. Donations in Sister Elizabeth’s memory may be made to the Development Office, Sisters of St. Joseph, 385 Watervliet Shaker Road, Latham, NY, 12110.

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