Sister Alice Cardillo, M.M. Maryknoll Sister for 57 Years, Dies

Maryknoll, NY: Sister Alice Cardillo, Registered Nurse, died on December 22nd, 2022 at the Maryknoll Sisters Center, Maryknoll, NY. She was 77 years old and had been a Maryknoll Sister for 57 years.

Alice was born in Sayre, PA on February 28th, 1945 to Joseph Cardillo and Jane (Kelly) Cardillo. She had four brothers: Joseph, David, Peter, and John, as well as two sisters: Mary and Jane.

In 1963, Alice graduated from St. Mary’s High School in Rutherford, NJ. She then continued her studies at Caldwell College in Caldwell, NJ from 1963-1964 and then entered the Maryknoll Sisters Novitiate in Topsfield, MA on September 2nd, 1965 (from St. Mary’s Parish, Rutherford, NJ in the Archdiocese of Newark, NJ).

Alice made her First Profession of Vows on June 24th, 1968 at the Maryknoll Sisters Center, Maryknoll, NY and her Final Profession of Vows on December 10th, 1978 in SoRok Island, South Korea.  She attended Mary Rogers College (located on the property of the Maryknoll Sisters Center, Maryknoll, NY) from 1968-1970, receiving her Bachelor of Arts Degree in Community Services.

In 1970, Sister Alice received her first overseas mission assignment to Seoul, South Korea where she first studied the language for two years. From 1972-1974, she worked in Pusan at the Maryknoll School of Nursing.  She returned to the United States in 1974 to study at Bergen Community College in Paramus, NJ where she earned an A.A. Degree in Nursing in 1976 along with her R.N. Registration from New Jersey and New York. She then practiced nursing at Hackensack Hospital in Hackensack, NJ from 1976-1977, before returning to Maryknoll Hospital in Pusan, Korea. She also worked at SoRok Island National Leprosy Hospital in Pusan from 1977-1978.

In 1979, Sister Alice’s ministry changed to pastoral work where she served those suffering with Hansen Disease in villages in the Pusan area until 1980. She continued doing pastoral work in Song Mo Won Village, Ko Chang, Korea, until 1988.

In 1988, she returned to the United States for family ministry, caring for her elderly parents for over a decade. She remained in the United States, ultimately transferring from the Korea Region to the Maryknoll Sisters Center, Maryknoll, NY where she worked in Congregational Service in numerous positions: the Development Department; Congregational Health Department; the Maryknoll Mission Archives Office; and Social Services for the Maryknoll Sisters Home Care Unit. She was also a devoted pastoral volunteer at Calvary Hospital in the Bronx, NY.

Sister Alice remained an active community member until her death on December 22nd, 2022.

Funeral Services:

A Vespers Service was held for Sister Alice on Wednesday, December 28th, 2022 at the Chapel of the Annunciation at the Maryknoll Sisters Center, Maryknoll, NY.

A Mass of the Resurrection was also held on Thursday, December 29th, 2022 also at the Maryknoll Sisters Center.  Interment followed at the Maryknoll Sisters Cemetery.