A Mass of Christian Burial for Sister Bernice Coreil, DC, was celebrated May 29 at Seton Chapel in Evansville, Indiana. Sister Bernice died May 28 at Seton Residence in Evansville. She was 97.
Sister Bernice was born on Feb. 13, 1929, in New Orleans, one of three daughters of Jules Otis and Bernice (Ranson) Coreil. She graduated from Joseph Kohn High School in 1945 and entered the Daughters of Charity in St. Louis in 1953.
After initial formation, Sister Bernice received a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Regis College in Denver, a master’s degree in health care administration from George Washington University in Washington, D.C., and an honorary doctorate from Aquinas Institute of Theology in St. Louis.
She served as a business manager at Hotel Dieu in El Paso, Texas; Providence Hospital in Mobile, Alabama; and St. Vincent Medical Center in Los Angeles. She continued her service in administration at East End Memorial Hospital in Birmingham, Alabama, and Hotel Dieu Hospital in New Orleans.
Sister Bernice was called to leadership for the Daughters of Charity as a councillor (1974-80) and visitatrix (1983-89) at Marillac Provincialate in St. Louis. She then served at the Daughters of Charity National Health System (DCNHS) as a special projects consultant, senior vice president of systems integration and executive assistant to the president (1993-99). While at DCNHS, Sister Bernice served on the board of the Catholic Health Association, including a year as CHA’s board chair from 1989-90.
Following her time as chair, Sister Bernice completed her most prominent public work as she advocated with CHA in the 1990s for health care reform during the Clinton-Gore administration, all in an effort to confront the rising costs of health care for both providers and patients and solve the problem of a widening gap in health insurance and health coverage.
She continued her ministry with Ascension Health in Clayton as senior executive advisor to the president and CEO (1999-2019). In 2024, she began to serve in the ministry of prayer in St. Louis. She continued in this ministry in Evansville until the time of her death.
Sister Bernice was preceded in death by her parents and her sister Lucy Mae Cantelli. She is survived by her sister Ruth Ann Gilly, many loving family members, her sisters in community and many friends.
Burial was in St. Joseph Cemetery in Evansville.
