In Memoriam: Sister Joan Utecht, OSB

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In Memoriam: Sister Joan Utecht, OSB

Funeral Live Stream

Friday, January 29 at 11:00 a.m.

Join us by live stream to celebrate Sister Joan Utecht's life on the St. Paul’s Monastery Facebook page: facebook.com/StPaulsMonastery/live/

Please note, the above link brings you to a page with all our Facebook live videos, including those previously recorded. You will not see the service live stream video on that page until it has begun. A full recording of the live stream will be available at the above link after the service has ended.

“May Christ Bring us all together to everlasting life.”
Rule of St. Benedict, Chapter 72

Sister Joan (Evelyn) Utecht was born on October 28, 1934 to Alexander and Mathilda (Barten) in St. Nicholas, Minnesota, the fifth child in a family of seven, four girls and three boys. In 1957, she entered the scholasticate at St. Paul’s Priory and chose the name of her patron saint, St. Joan of Arc. She entered the novitiate on June 1, 1958 and made her first Profession of Vows on July 11, 1959. She attended the College of St. Catherine, earning a B.A. in Elementary Education in 1962 and a Master’s Degree in Counseling in 1972 from the University of St. Thomas, and a Master’s of Science in Administration from the University of Notre Dame in 1989. For nearly 20 years, she taught middle school students at St. Bernard’s, St. Paul; Assumption, Richfield; St. Anne’s, Minneapolis; St. Charles Borromeo, Minneapolis; St. Boniface, Hastings; Epiphany, Coon Rapids and Presentation, Maplewood. She served as CCD Coordinator at St. Casimir’s, St. Paul. From 1984-1997, she served as Treasurer of St. Paul’s Monastery and later worked as a library assistant at Hill-Murray School. In 2003, she ministered in the Business Office and Pastoral Ministry at St. Therese in New Hope.

Sister Joan was passionate about pro-life and social justice causes. In her retirement years she volunteered at Tubman (located in former monastery). Most recently Sister Joan served the monastic Community as a Eucharistic minister. Sister Joan died on January 21, 2021, at the age of 86, having lived as a professed Benedictine for 61 years.

She is survived by her Benedictine Sisters of St. Paul’s Monastery, her brother, Gregory, and sisters Agnes (Steil) and Elizabeth (Tibbetts), along with many nieces and nephews. We pray that Christ, the Prince of Peace, will lovingly welcome her to her eternal home.

Service of Christian Burial January 29, 2021 at 11:00 a.m. at St. Paul’s Monastery. Due to COVID-19, we are not able to accommodate guests. Service of Christian burial will be live streamed on Facebook and linked on St. Paul's Monastery website. Interment Monastery Cemetery. Memorials preferred to St. Paul’s Monastery.

Community of St. Paul’s Monastery
Sisters, Oblates, and Benedictine Associates
Sister Catherine Nehotte, OSB, Prioress
St. Paul, Minnesota
Federation of St. Benedict