Vincentian Father John T. Richardson, 98, died March 29 in Missouri.

Father Richardson served as president of DePaul University from 1981 to 1993, leading a major expansion of the institution, and he was chancellor from 1993 to 2017.

“Father Richardson’s leadership of DePaul resulted in growing our national reputation, while expanding our engagement in the city of Chicago and deepening our commitment to the university’s Catholic, Vincentian, and urban mission,” DePaul President A. Gabriel Esteban said. “He was a visionary leader, whose impact on our university will endure, and he will be missed by all in the DePaul family.”

He joined the university in 1954 as dean of the graduate school, and from 1955 to 1970, he taught in the law school, teaching dozens of future Cook County judges and Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley.

Father Richardson’s presidency marked a period of intense growth of DePaul’s community involvement in Lincoln Park, the Loop and all of Chicago. Hallmarks of his time with the university include increasing DePaul’s appeal to students across the country, strengthening the university’s Vincentian commitment to its urban community and developing the diversity of DePaul’s faculty, staff and student body.

In 1997, he went to Kenya to teach in the Vincentian seminary there, returning to DePaul in 2010.

Sister of St. Casimir Johanna Marie Shainauskas, 88, died Feb. 13 in Lemont.

Born in Chicago, Sister Johanna Marie made her first profession of vows in 1952 and her perpetual vows in 1957.

She ministered in California, Pennsylvania and Illinois as a teacher, assistant principal, principal and director of student services.

In the Archdiocese of Chicago, Sister Johanna Marie taught at All Saints (1952-1954); St. Bartholomew, Waukegan (1954-1956); St. Norbert, Northbrook (1959-1963); Immaculate Conception (44th Street) (1963-1964); Nativity BVM (1964-1965); and Providence of God (1971-1976), where she served as principal from 1976 to 1977.

She was a receptionist at Holy Cross Hospital while teaching music at Immaculate Conception from 1988 to 1989. At Maria High School, she taught Spanish and served as director of student services (1990-1999).

After she retired from education, Sister Johanna Marie served as secretary and receptionist at Nativity BVM Parish.

Adrian Dominican Sister Patricia Laverne (Michael Dominic) Erickson, 79, died Feb. 14 in Adrian, Michigan.

Born in Wisconsin, she was in the 61st year of her religious life. Sister Patricia ministered in education and as a nurse, and in service to her congregation. She served in Illinois, Ohio, Michigan, Alabama, Texas, California, Florida, and Puerto Rico, and in Nicaragua, the Bahamas and the Dominican Republic.

In the Archdiocese of Chicago, she taught at St. Denis (1961-1965), St. Rita (1967-1969) and Our Lady of Loretto, Hometown (1970-1972) and was a nursing assistant at Little Company of Mary Hospital, Evergreen Park (1972-1973).

Sister Patricia Laverne became a resident of the Dominican Life Center in 2021.

She is survived by her sister, Nancy Revell, and her brother, Michael Erickson.

Sinsinawa Dominican Sister Monice Kavanaugh, 83, died March 16 in Hazel Green, Wisconsin.

Born in Chicago, Sister Monice attended several Catholic elementary schools, including St. Simon; St. Brendan; Little Flower; St. Leo; and Ascension, Oak Park; before attending Trinity High School, River Forest.

She made her first religious profession in 1958 and her perpetual profession Aug. 5, 1961. She was a teacher, served her congregation, and was a pastoral minister and director of the diaconate formation program for the Archdiocese of Chicago. She served in Wisconsin, New York and Illinois.

In the Archdiocese of Chicago, Sister Monice taught at Queen of Peace, Burbank (1966-1976), where she also served as the chair of the Christian Living Department. She was a pastoral associate at St. Fabian, Bridgeview (1976-1984), and at Immaculate Conception Parish (1991-1999), and was the director of formation for the permanent diaconate formation program for the archdiocese (1984-1991).

Sister Monice served as a member of the Resources for Mission Team for the Sinsinawa Dominican Congregation while living in Chicago (2011-2017) and ministered with the House of Connections and the Learning Center in Chicago (1999-2014), providing adult education and literacy programs and serving the center as executive director, employment counselor and program director.

Deacon Robert Ciesil, 94, of Schaumburg, died March 2. He was ordained in 1992 and served at St. Alphonsus Liguori, Prospect Heights, and St. Hubert, Hoffman Estates.

He is survived by his wife, Harriet; and his children Mary Schroeder, Donna Fladd and James Ciesil; five grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren.