Joan (Marie Angele) Panella M.A. ’74 entered the Sisters of Notre Dame in 1958 and took the name, Sister Marie Angele. She taught in Notre Dame elementary schools in Salinas (Sacred Heart and Madonna del Sasso), Campbell, Folsom, and at Notre Dame High School in Alameda. After receiving a master’s of social work and a license as a clinical social worker from SCU, she used her natural empathy for others at Notre Dame High School in San Jose, and then in campus ministry at San Jose State. While there, Sr. Joan recognized the pain and unmet needs of gay and lesbian Catholics and their families, and encouraged diocesan support in addressing their needs. She continued to serve on the committee to network and provide resources for individuals, parishes, and priests ministering to the LGBT community. Sr. Joan was also a medical social worker for 15 years at the Community Hospital in Los Gatos, ensuring that those being discharged were able to access the care and services they needed. When the Notre Dame de Namur Province Center opened in 2003, Sr. Joan was asked to serve as the residence administrator. Recently, she has been enjoying her ministry at St. Nicholas and St. William Parish in Los Altos, and her service on the board of directors for Notre Dame High School, San Jose. Last May, when Sr. Joan celebrated 60 years as a Sister of Notre Dame de Namur, Ellen MacLeod Mahon, a longtime friend, thanked her “for a lifetime of knowing your teasing humor, your dedication and generosity, your steadfast determination and your solid loyalty to friends and anyone in need.” She passed away on Dec. 30, 2018, and was preceded in death by her parents, John and Lucile Panella. Sr. Joan will be greatly missed by her cousins, Donald R. Stephens (San Francisco), Brian R. O’Leary (Modesto), Mary-Kevin Willey (Elk Grove), and Jeanie Jenks (Redmond, Oregon) as well as many former students and friends and her Sisters of Notre Dame.