Sister Joanna Ohlandt, CSJ

as I experienced Joanna’s process of returning home to God, it has come to my mind and heart so many meaningful remembrances of her life among us, here in New York and in Puerto Rico.
My first encounter with her was 65 years ago, when I was a high school student at Academia San Luis in Lajas, Puerto Rico. This certainly was a great gift from God, that I still treasure.
This exceptional religious woman, daughter of St. Joseph and friend, shared her love of God and neighbor with everyone she encountered, making the difference in each one of us.
Sister Joanna Ohlandt (Mary Ohlandt) was born in 1928 in Brooklyn, NY. Entered the CSJ’s from Our Lady of Lourdes Parish, Queens, in 1946. She made her final vows in 1951.
Her first two missions where St. Brendan’s and Thomas Aquinas in Brooklyn.
While teaching at Teresa of Avila elementary school, she got a call from Mother Immaculata Maria, inviting her to go on a mission to Puerto Rico. She did not know much of Puerto Rico and never considered to volunteer to go. She found no reason to say No, and in 1960, she left New York to Lajas, a small town in the southwest part of the Island, to teach at Academia San Luis. There she taught
Math, Science and Religion at the high school.
After six years there, she moved to Academia Santa Maria in Ponce, to be the principal. She was elected vicar of Puerto Rico in 1971 and served for two turns until 1977.
From 1977 to 1981 she went to La Esmeralda, Colombia, South America. She did Pastoral Ministry work.
When Joanna came back from Colombia, she worked in the finance office in Brentwood.
She went back to Puerto Rico in 1981 to teach Math and Religion at Academia Maria Reina.
In 1986 she was elected Counselor of the CSJ government, while also working in Maria Regina.
From 1990 to 2001 she did Parish Outreach at St. Francis de Sales Parish.
Joanna’s vision and simplicity of life was admired by all who knew her, especially her students, parents and those closer to her.
As time passed, we learned to appreciate her self giving and loving care, her discipline and organization. She was known for her objectivity when dealing with difficult things.
Joanna was a very spiritual woman, whose strong character challenges us to be better Christians. One of her goals was that ALL who entered in contact with her, became an instrument of God’s love, in a world that needed Him so much.
In November 2024, while she was planning her future funeral, she said; “Going to Puerto Rico as a missionary opened my mind and heart to the real world, and expanded my vision of life in so many aspects. It made me become a different person, open to serve anyone that needed me”.
She always wondered how God chose a young girl from a small Queens Village in New York, challenging her to be a self giving person as a Sister of St. Joseph.
Joanna went to say that God helped her learn Spanish fast and well, so she could become His instrument in understanding God’s way, especially in a Spanish culture.
A dear friend of ours mentioned that Joanna did not have to speak with words. Her deep look into our eyes, and her beautiful smile communicated more than we needed to see or hear.
Joanna was very special to me and my family. My brothers told her that she was the “Nun of the times”, because she treated them and their friends
with a loving discipline, but letting them feel very important people.
Joanna, the people of Puerto Rico and l, thank you for the gift of yourself, your loving care for us, while missioning in Puerto Rico, for being a good model to imitate, teacher, friend and just you.
May the dear Lord keep you in His presence.
May his mother Maria be always by your side.
Your contribution to the island of Puerto Rico and the Sisters of St. Joseph would never be forgotten.
May God bless your family, that gave you to us.
Sister Gloria Cruz, CSJ

Good morning, my name is Maureen O’Connor Ruiz, and I am one of S. Joanna’s nieces. I am truly honored to speak about our aunt today. I will admit, though, that I am a bit terrified to speak since my Chemistry teacher, English teacher, Dean of students and the principal from my years at The Mary Louis Academy are all present and I am a little nervous about the grade I may receive on my writing and presentation. Please go easy on me!
An aunt’s love is a reflection of God’s grace – she guides, nurtures and lifts us in faith and love. S. Joanna Ohlandt, CSJ, or Aunt Mary to us, was a true representation of God’s love on earth. Aunt Mary was always present for her nieces and nephews, her siblings, Frank, Katherine and John and her in-laws, Trudy, Phyllis and Michael. There was rarely a family event that Aunt Mary missed or for which she did not share a prayer with us. Aunt Mary truly brought her faith to life and made the church feel like home to us and to everyone she encountered.
Throughout our lives, we made many visits here, to Brentwood and to her home in Bayshore to visit. I can remember running through the halls and grounds here and having Aunt Mary or Sister Theresa grab us a good humor bar from the refrigerators in the dining rooms. When Aunt Mary came to visit at our parents’ house or at an event, she often brought an Entenman’s coffee cake and we just gobbled it up. But Aunt Mary also had some superpowers as well… she helped care for all five of us while our parents went away on a European vacation and she also welcomed Marybeth and Kathy to visit her in Puerto Rico to experience the wonderful community she developed there. As the nieces and nephews grew up, Aunt Mary was present for marriages, births and other celebrations. Her generous spirit extended to the next generation as she hosted the yearly Easter celebration and the epic easter egg hunts. But her impact went way beyond just our family. In fact, last year, when I visited San German, PR, we actually met a former student of Aunt Mary’s who remembered her, and all of the sisters who taught there, and spoke of how those women truly changed her life and the lives of so many people in that village.
Like the other members of her family, Aunt Mary always enjoyed the calm and beauty of the beach. She enjoyed a good day on the shore to share some sandwiches and to take a moment to reflect on the many gifts we have in our lives and how beautiful this world truly is. It was a time to value the beauty of quiet, to pray and to reflect and she passed on that love of the natural world to many of us as well.
I can’t help but think about the motto of The Mary Louis Academy as I think about Aunt Mary’s legacy. Fidem Servavi – I keep the faith. Aunt Mary not only kept the faith, but she spent her life sharing it with so many of us and teaching us to be faithful servants of God.
It’s funny I always thought everyone had an aunt who was a nun I mean, who wouldn’t want to have one? Aunt Mary’s magical power was that she found ways to make religion and faith things to love and cherish. In addition to supporting and loving her family, Aunt Mary’s also lived her life finding ways to advocate for those who could not do so themselves. She believed in the education and empowerment of women, the importance of the sustainability of the earth and the significance of fighting for social justice.

Aunt Mary leaves an impressive legacy: she left an indelible mark on the people of Puerto Rico, Columbia and the multitude of immigrant communities she served, she showed her family how to be a true servant of god and how to share God’s love with those around us, she emphasized the importance of community and the bonds we have with sisters, brothers, parents, spouses and friends and the absolute necessity to have an enduring faith in God and in each other and to be humble in this world.

We will all miss Aunt Mary but we know that her spirit is in heaven with God, with her family and with her friend, Sister Theresa and all of the others that have gone before her. In closing, I just want to read a poem that Aunt Mary sent me almost five years ago to read today. It’s a beautiful poem written by her friend, Sister Immaculata.

Sister Joanna Ohlandt, CSJ, the former Sister Maria Joanna, died on March 20, 2025 in the 79th year of her religious life.