Sister Mary Canisius O'Keeffe, who died on January 4th, was a formidable woman whose contribution to Irish society might have been lost had she not decided in 1927 to become a Sister of Charity. She was a woman who "broke the mould" an imposing presence who didn't so much walk into a room as arrive.
Most of her life was spent in the health-care ministry. She was Superior of Temple Street and St Vincent's hospitals and supervised the difficult move of St Vincent's from St Stephen's Green to Elm Park during 1968/ 1969.
Sister Canisius was admitted to the Fellowship of the Faculty of Nursing by the Royal College of Physicians in 1983 and conferred with an Honorary Doctorate of Laws by the National University of Ireland the following year. She was born on March 19th, 1902, the fourth of five children of a well-to-do family in Schull, Co Cork and baptised Josephine Mary. Her father, Maurice O'Keeffe, was a farmer and businessman and her mother was Mary (nee Lyons). Of her sisters Frances and Mary and brothers Jim and Paddy, only Mary is alive today.
She was a boarder at the Ursuline Convent in Waterford following a local primary school education. Had she not chosen a religious vocation, she would have settled into the traditional woman's path - living at home awaiting a suitable husband. The nursing profession attracted her to the Sisters of Charity.
Sister Mary Canisius studied nursing and worked in the hospice at Hackney, London. She later became Matron of St Vincent's Hospital, moving to Temple Street Hospital for a seven-year period. She is remembered by staff as someone who put into action founder Mother Mary Aikenhead's maxim: "We must give to the poor what the rich can pay for themselves".
Sister Canisius was brought back to St Vincent's in 1968 to oversee the hospital's transition to its present Donnybrook site. She travelled to the US to see first-hand what modern hospital design was about and involved herself in all aspects of the construction and layout of the new hospital. She was a strict disciplinarian, but was always prepared to listen. Of liberal mind, she liked nothing better than to be challenged by new ideas. Fellow sisters glimpsed in unguarded moments a compassionate woman with a sense of wonder and great humility. When she retired from St Vincent's in 1974, she was appointed Superior of the Sisters of Charity nursing home in Donnybrook.
Her nephews and nieces, one of whom is West Cork Fine Gael TD, Jim O`Keeffe, were especially fond of her because of her subtle wit, her understanding of their youthful indiscretions and the fact that she insisted on vetting all of their potential spouses.
A tall spare figure, she remained active through her advancing years. When she was in her seventies, she went sailing in Cork with a nephew.
Sister Canisius is survived by her sister, Mary.
Sister Mary Canisius O'Keeffe: born 1902; died January, 2000