Sr Sheila Conliffe rsj died peacefully on 12 September 2025 at St Catherine’s Aged Care Bathurst after many years of debilitating health.

Born to parents John and Kathleen (O’Dwyer) in Dunedoo in 1938, Sheila Conliffe was the youngest of seven children. Her primary education was completed at the one teacher state school at Cobbora where she grew up and enjoyed a happy carefree life. She completed her secondary education at St Michael’s School, Dunedoo.

Sheila entered religious life at Perthville in November 1955 and was professed in 1958. Sheila lived and ministered in many places in the Bathurst Diocese and in Sydney. Her special love for little children was nourished during thirty years as an infants’ teacher. Her teaching years were a great joy in her life as creatively, she trialled new, emerging methods.  Her teaching ministry started in Molong in 1958 and continued in Oberon, West Bathurst, Gulgong, Gilgandra, Baradine, Gulargambone, Canowindra, Coonabarabran and Dunedoo.

During 1992-93 Sheila studied and gained a Certificate in Counselling and later completed a CPE course. She ministered as a part time chaplain for seven years at the Children’s Hospital at Camperdown and then at the New Children’s Hospital at Westmead. Sheila felt that she grew in empathy and compassion as she journeyed with suffering children and their families.

Due to ill-health which she had battled all her life, Sheila retired and engaged in visitation ministry in rural towns. When no longer able to manage independently, Sheila was grateful to move to St Catherine’s Aged Care in June 2009. During her years there she was friendly and gracious to residents, their visitors and staff.

Sheila was thankful for many wonderful life experiences, the highlights being Assumption Institute, the Crossroads Spirituality Course at Baulkham Hills, and a trip to UK and Ireland in 2000. Her Golden and Diamond Jubilee celebrations with her Josephite sisters and her family gave her great joy. The Perthville Sisters’ Fusion in 2014 fulfilled her dream of unity among the Josephite family and gave her great happiness.

She was very close to her family. They communicated regularly and she held them all in prayer. Sheila enjoyed music, knitting, art and all creative activities, and she loved nature. At St Catherine’s she was delighted to be tutored in art and spent many contented hours painting. Many of her completed works brightened her room.

Sr Sheila had a friendly, outgoing personality and was a dedicated and much-loved sister of St Joseph for 67 years. Her Mass of Christian burial was celebrated in St Joseph’s Chapel Perthville on 22^nd September, and she was interred in the sisters’ cemetery at Perthville. We pray that Sr Sheila now enjoys the fullness of God’s eternal love.