A Mass of Christian Burial for Sister Patricia Elder, DC, was celebrated Feb. 21 at the Seton Residence Chapel in Evansville, Indiana. Sister Patricia died Feb. 18 at Seton Residence. She was 93.
Sister Patricia was born on July 27, 1931, in St. Louis, one of four children of Joseph and Nathalie (Taylor) Elder. After graduating from St. Vincent High School in Perryville, she entered the Daughters of Charity in St. Louis in 1950.
Sister Patricia received a bachelor’s degree in nursing from Marillac College in St. Louis, a nurse-midwife certificate from Catholic Maternity Center in 1960 and a master’s degree in nursing in 1965 from The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. Her nursing ministry included nursing supervision at St. Joseph Hospital in Chicago, St. Thomas Hospital in Nashville, St. Vincent Hospital in St. Louis (1956-58) and St. Vincent Hospital in Indianapolis. She spent a year on faculty at Catholic University of Ecuador in Quito, Ecuador, and served on the faculty of Marillac College in St. Louis (1966-73) and Saint Louis University School of Nursing (1976-80).
She served in various areas as staff nurse, midwife and director of maternity care at St. Louis City Hospital (1973, and 1974-76) and as director of the graduate program in nursing/midwifery at Saint Louis University School of Nursing (1980-84). Sister Patricia was also education coordinator/nurse midwifery at Frontier Nursing School of Midwifery in Hyden, Kentucky; director of maternity care at Brownsville Community Health Center in Brownsville, Texas, and St. Vincent: Daughters of Charity Community Services and Texas Tech Medical School, both in El Paso, Texas.
Sister Patricia served for 19 years in Austin, Texas, as community ambassador for the Children’s Medical Center Foundation (1994-2013), board chair for Health Services (1988-97; 1999-2004), and governance development (1994-2006). In 2013, Sister Patricia entered a ministry of prayer at The Sarah Community in Bridgeton, Mo. (2013-16); and continued until the time of her death at Seton Residence in Evansville.
Sister Patricia was preceded in death by her parents, her brother Ronald and her sister, Elizabeth Elder. She is survived by her brother Robert, other loving family members, her sisters in community and many friends.
