Sister Bertha Ann Miller, CSA
Sister Bertha Ann Miller, CSA, baptized Mary Agnes Miller, died peacefully March 27, 2021, at St. Francis Home in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin.
Mary Agnes was born in Decatur, Indiana, on January 21, 1926, to Peter C. Miller and Anna Bertha Gase Miller. She grew up on the family farm with her three brothers and three sisters.
After graduating from Decatur Catholic High School in 1944, Mary Agnes entered the Congregation of Sisters of St. Agnes in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin. She made her first profession of vows in the Congregation as Sister Bertha Ann on August 15, 1947.
Sister Bertha Ann received a BS in Education from Marian College of Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, in 1954. She taught primary grades for twenty-nine years in Wisconsin, Kansas, and Illinois. In 1971, Sister Bertha Ann received a certificate in Theological Studies from Marian College. She continued throughout her life to enrich herself and enhance her ministerial skills with courses in education and theology.
Sister served as librarian for two years at St. Mary’s School, Oshkosh, Wisconsin. From 1978 – 1986, she worked in the Business Office of St. Mary’s Springs High School in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin. She then served for twenty years as the bookkeeper for The Leo House in New York City. Her dedicated service and precise accounting are still remembered by the staff of The Leo House.
In 2006, Sister Bertha Ann retired from full-time ministry and joined the community of sisters living at Nazareth Court and Center. Throughout her life in community and in her places of ministry, she was beloved for her gentle, patient spirit and her attention to detail—not resting until the day’s work was done well.
Sister Bertha Ann was preceded in death by her parents Peter and Bertha Ann Gase Miller; her brothers James and Oscar Miller; and her sister Rosalia A. Noonan.
Sister is survived by her brother Andrew (Jacqueline) Miller; her sisters Frances Gruss and Naureen (Carl) Ehinger; nieces and nephews; and the Sisters of St. Agnes, with whom she lived, prayed and ministered.
A private Mass of Christian Burial for Sister Bertha Ann will be held on April 7, 2021, in the Nazareth Center Chapel, 375 Gillett Street, Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, with Father Ken Smits, Capuchin, presiding. Burial will follow at St. Joseph Springs Cemetery in Fond du Lac.
Memorials can be directed to the CSA Mission Advancement Office, 320 County Road K, Fond du Lac, WI 54937.
The Sisters of St. Agnes are grateful to the nurses and staff of Nazareth Court and Center, St. Francis Home, and Hospice Hope for their care of Sister Bertha Ann in her final years of life.
Zacherl Funeral Home is serving the Congregation of Sisters of St. Agnes.