Providence Sister Agnes Clare (Phyllis Marie) Buckley, 80, died on Sept. 23 in Boston. 

Born in Massachusetts, she entered the Sisters of Providence in 1956 and professed final vows in 1963. 

She ministered in education for 42 years in schools in Illinois, Maryland and Massachusetts.  

In the Archdiocese of Chicago, she taught at Our Lady of Sorrows (1960-1961) and St. Agnes (1961-1963).

Sister Agnes Clare was an early recipient of a transplanted heart and the first woman undergoing this procedure in 1989. After her recovery, she continued to give herself energetically to ministry, teaching fifth grade for another 12 years and serving as a parish and school volunteer for seven years. She was the longest living heart transplant recipient at 28 years. 

Sister Agnes Clare is survived by her brother, James, and her sister, Catherine.