Obituary of Sister Grace Rabideau, OSF
Sister Grace Ann Rabideau entered eternal life on February 8, 2026, at St. Patrick’s Residence, Naperville, Illinois. She was 98 years old and a member of the Sisters of St. Francis of Mary Immaculate for 77 years. Born in Bayfield, Wisconsin, Sister Grace Ann Rabideau was the daughter of the late Charlotte (Cadotte) Rabideau. She was a Tribal member of Bad River Band of the Lake Superior Chippewa, given the Ojibwe/Chippewa name Wabanokwe, meaning Early Star in the Morning Woman. Sister Grace Ann attended Holy Family Grade School and Bayfield High School in Bayfield, Wisconsin. She earned her BA (1956) in Philosophy at the College of St. Francis, Joliet, Illinois, and went on to earn her MA (1973) in Education Administration at the University of Minnesota. In 1974 she received her second MA (1974) in Educational Psychology: Counseling and Guidance from California State University, Northridge, California.
The first years of her ministry (1948-1970) were spent teaching elementary grades in schools throughout Ohio, Illinois and Wisconsin. In 1971, Sister Grace Ann embarked on a new mission as a social worker. Because of her heritage as a full-blooded Chippewa, Sister Grace felt she was being called to work with Native American youth, so she moved to California and became the first Coordinator of Indian Affairs at California State University, Northridge. In 1981, she counseled the Crow and Cheyenne Students in Ashland, Montana. Then, for two years she worked with Native American youth in a drug and alcohol program in Denver, Colorado.
Sister Grace moved back to the Los Angeles area in 1984 and accepted a counseling position in the Academic Advancement Program, University of California, Los Angeles. She became advisor to the American Indian Association on campus and liaison between the Academic Advancement Program and the Indian Studies Center. During her tenure at the University, Mayor Bradley appointed Sister Grace as a member of the Los Angeles City/County American Indian Commission to which she was elected Chair. In 1989, the City asked her to accept Advisory Committee membership on the Los Angeles Human Relations Commission. From 1989 until 2007 Sister Grace was an academic advisor at Los Angeles Valley Community College, Granada Hills, California. While at Los Angeles Valley College and Granada Hills school for GED’s, Sister Grace was president of the American Indian Scholarship of Southern California, a nonprofit organization providing scholarships to Native American college students in financial need. Because of her achievements and leadership, she was included in the (2006-2007) Cambridge Who’s Who registry of executives and professionals as one of our country’s most accomplished women.
Returning to her hometown of Bayfield, Sister Grace served as a teacher-aid (2008-2010) at Bayfield High School, coordinated and taught (2010-2014) in a domestic abuse program for Women, Bad River Reservation, Odanah, Wisconsin, until she became involved (2014-2023) with Outreach Senior Care, Bayfield, Wisconsin. Sister Grace was strongly dedicated to parish life, attended many activities, volunteered at Holy Family Church, Bayfield, and St. Francis Church on the Red Cliff Reservation where she was a liturgical minister until she moved (2024-2026) to St. Patrick’s Residence, Naperville, Illinois. There she continued her ministry of prayer and presence.
Sister Grace Ann was preceded in death by her mother and her sister, Grace Ann. She is survived by a Special Cousin, David Curran, and a large, close-knit family of cousins, friends, and colleagues whom she mentored and inspired. Sister Grace loved her family and her Ojibwa culture.
Visitation for Sister Grace Ann Rabideau will be held at 9:00 a.m. at St. Patrick’s Residence, 1400 Brookdale Road, Naperville, Illinois, on Monday, February 16, 2026, followed by the Mass for Christian Burial at 10:00 a.m. Sharing of Memories will follow the Mass in the Chapel. There will be an evening Visitation at Leo LaFernier Cultural Center, 88989 Nuzzo Road, Bayfield, Wisconsin, on Wednesday, February 18, 2026. A Mass for Christian Burial will be celebrated at 11:00 a.m. at Holy Family Church, 232 N 1st St, Bayfield, Wisconsin on Thursday, February 19, 2026. Interment will take place at Calvary Cemetery, Bayfield, Wisconsin.
If you would like to make a donation in honor of Sister Grace Ann Rabideau, OSF, or another Joliet Franciscan Sister, please send your memorial to the Sisters of St. Francis of Mary Immaculate, 1433 Essington Road, Joliet, IL, 60435.
