Sr. Marie Vittetoe, CHM

Sr. Marie Clare Vittetoe (Mary Bernard), CHM, 93, of Davenport, passed away July, 31, 2020 at the Humility of Mary Center, Davenport.  A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at Humility of Mary Magnificat Chapel.  Per her wish the rite of cremation will be accorded and graveside services and inurnment will be 1:30pm on Saturday, August 8, 2020 in St. Mary’s Cemetery, Keota, IA.  Halligan-McCabe-DeVries Funeral Home, Davenport, is assisting the family. Memorials may be made to the Congregation of the Humility of Mary, 820 W. Central Park Ave, Davenport, IA 52804 or St. James Catholic School, Washington, IA

Marie Clare Vittetoe was born on May 19, 1927 in a farm house in rural Keokuk County, IA to Edward and Marcella (Peiffer) Vittetoe.  She attended St. Elizabeth Grade School in Harper, IA for two years, graduated from 8th grade at St. James Grade School in Washington High School, Washington, IA; Ottumwa Heights College (AS), Marycrest College (BS), St. John’s School of Medical Technology, and West Virginia University (MS and EdD).

In 1946 she entered the Congregation of the Humility of Mary (CHM) and served on the Cabinet, as Senator, and on committees.  From 1950-70 she was medical technologist and laboratory supervisor at St. Joseph Hospital, taught in that School of Nursing, and Ottumwa School of Medical Technology.  From 1970-73 she earned degrees at West Virginia University.  From 1973-78 she was Assistant Professor and Division Chair of Health Occupations Teacher Education in the College of Education at the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana. This unique program offered off campus courses for bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees to health care practitioners who wished to become certified teachers in Illinois, thus she traveled to recruit, teach, set up student teacher sites, and then to visit student teachers.

From 1978-94 she was Professor and Department Chair of Clinical Laboratory Sciences at the University of Kentucky College of Allied Health Professions in Lexington, KY, where she was instrumental in establishing an outreach program for students in rural Kentucky to earn off campus BS degree in CLS.  She also participated in a CLS career ladder program, so students of one- or two-year programs transferred credit to bachelor’s degree programs.

In American Society for Medical Technology (ASMT), she held offices, served on committees, gave workshops and presentations at state, regional and national meetings.  In both 1980 and 1990, she won ASMT Educator of the Year.

In 1985-87 she was Project HOPE consultant for University of Haiti Medical Technology Program in Port au Prince and Cap Haitian.  During her 1992 sabbatical she worked and taught in St. Lucia, Guyana, and Jamaica.  From 1999-2011 she was volunteer clinical laboratory consultant to Hospital Sacre Coeur Laboratory in Milot, Haiti, training technicians, facilitating a new clinical laboratory with automated instruments.  She also served as a volunteer consultant and teacher for other labs in Haiti, and as curriculum consultant for the MT Educational Project at the National Public Health Laboratory of Haiti.

In retirement, she lived and had a “ministry of caring” for others in Iowa City.  She frequently visited Sisters in Davenport and family in the Washington, IA vicinity.  She was especially attentive to her learning-disabled nephew Dan Moeller, who died in September, 2017.

She is survived by siblings Wilfrid (Clarabell), Leo (Rose), Audrey (Cletus) Reed, Eileen (James) Moeller, many nieces, nephews, grand and great grand nieces, nephews, and by her religious Sisters and Associates.  She was preceded in death by her parents and brothers Paul Edward and Donald Joseph who died in infancy.