Loretto Sister Elizabeth “Betty” (Marian Francis) McWilliams, 85, died March 9.

Born in Rockford, she entered the Sisters of Loretto in 1953 and made her final vows in 1961.

Throughout her 64 years of service, Sister Betty served in many positions, including 18 years as a teacher, 20 years as an innovative hospice care leader and provider in Highland Park, and 12 years for the Loretto Community in health care and administrative roles in Denver. She particularly was known for her hospice work at Highland Park Hospital, whose hospice program was one of the first in the country. Sister Betty created some of the earliest standards of care for home hospice and helped form one of the first medical ethics committees in the country.

In the Archdiocese of Chicago, Sister Betty taught at Holy Cross (1964-1967) and Immaculate Conception, Highland Park (teacher 1969-1972, principal 1972-1978), She was a parish worker in Deerfield (1978-1982). She worked in a hospice office in Highland Park for a year (1982-1983) and then served as hospice coordinator at Highland Park Hospital in Glenview from 1983 to 1993.