Angela Bayo, RSCJ

Birth: July 29, 1926
Profession: July 30, 1956
Death: May 28, 2024

Religious of the Sacred Heart, Angela “Angie” Lucy Bayo died on May 28, 2024, in Albany, New York. She was 97 years old and a religious for 75 years. Angie was born on July 29, 1926, in New York, New York, to Louis G. Bayo and Angela H. Bayo.  She was one of three children, growing up with a sister and a brother. Angie graduated in 1944 from Convent of the Sacred Heart, Maplehurst, in the Bronx. The school relocated in 1945 to Greenwich, Connecticut, and is known today as Sacred Heart Greenwich. She went on to Manhattanville College earning a B.A in history in 1948. After graduation, Angie entered the Society of the Sacred Heart at Kenwood on September 7, 1948. She pronounced her first vows in 1951 and began teaching at the Convent of the Sacred Heart, 91st Street, for a short time followed by Sacred Heart Greenwich while enrolling in graduate studies at Manhattanville. In 1953, Sister Bayo earned an M.A. in history and then went on to teach at the Convent of the Sacred Heart, Rochester, New York, until early 1956. In March that same year, she went to Rome to prepare for her final profession, which she made on July 30, 1956.

Sister Bayo returned to the Convent of the Sacred Heart in New York, 91st Street, in 1956 where she taught for the next two years.  From 1959 to 1967, she was mistress general at the Convent of the Sacred Heart in Grosse Pointe, Michigan. In 1967, Sister Bayo returned to 91st Street and became the head of the lower school, where in addition to supervising the work of the teachers, she was responsible for curriculum development. She remained at the school for the next twenty-nine years. Sister Bayo recounts that her years at the school were some of the happiest of her life. She helped to create a culture of care and concern for the teachers, students and their parents in which the Sacred Heart values were taught and lived out daily.  She found the faculty one of her “greatest sources of joy” and spoke with pride “of their dedication and desire to make 91st Street an outstanding place for students to grow.” Over the years, Sister Bayo was recognized for her work but most of all for her presence of which her impact was felt the most.

In 1996, at the age of 70, Sister Bayo made the decision to retire from full time work. The school honored her with a reflections journal with remembrances and salutations. While Sister Bayo was known for her timeless elegance and sense of style, what shined through was the mission by which she lived. 

Nancy Salisbury, RSCJ, headmistress during this time wrote…

"She [the child] comes as she is and she is cared for with great love…she becomes the best that she can be…she knows that she is loved as “the single child.” This vision of St. Madeleine Sophie becomes a reality as Sister Bayo looks into her eyes on her first day of school. As she leaves the lower school she knows that in Sister Bayo’s heart, she will always be that one special child. What greater gift could be given?"

After she retired from full-time work at 91st Street, Sister Bayo served as the lower school's religious education consultant. One of her primary roles was preparing second graders for their First Communion. She gave up this work in 2012 when she moved to the Abba House Community in Albany. She would return on occasion to speak with the girls about the importance of the sacrament and how much they are loved by God. 

In January of 2023, at the age of 97, Sister Bayo moved to the Teresian House Community in Albany. During the past month, she developed pneumonia and did not respond to treatment. On May 28, 2024, she went to God.

The Mass of the Resurrection for Sister Bayo will be on Saturday, June 8, at 11:00 a.m. at St. Madeleine Sophie Catholic Church in Schenectady, New York. Father Chris DeGiovine is the celebrant. A reception will follow the services, catered by Michael, former cook at Abba and good friend of many of the RSCJ in Albany.

To access the St. Madeleine Sophie livestream for Sister Angela Bayo's funeral you can click any of the links below to watch the funeral. 

Parish Website - https://smssgabparish.org (just scroll down on the homepage to the livestream box)

Facebook - https://m.facebook.com/SMSandSGA/ 

YouTube - https://youtube.com/@churchofsmsandsga788?si=rHZRVChzpWFvKbMi

A memorial Mass will be held at 91st Street at a future date.

Memorial contributions may be made in Sister Bayo’s memory to the Society of the Sacred Heart, P.O. Box 958047, St. Louis, MO 63195-8047 or online at https://rscj.org/donate.