Obituaries

Therese ‘Terry’ Pounds (Joiner): 1927-2024

Therese “Terry” Pounds (Joiner), 97, of Montclair, NJ died peacefully surrounded by family at Mountainside Hospital on Wednesday, September 11, 2024. Beloved mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, aunt, cousin and friend, Terry was born a ‘survivor,’ having lost her mother who died soon after her birth in 1927 in New York City. She subsequently lived all over the world as a self-described “army brat” after her father, Colonel Talley Dosier Joiner, remarried and reclaimed “his little Therese” from her aunts who raised her until she was six. After graduating from Columbia High School in Maplewood, NJ, Terry briefly attended college at Trinity, DC, then decided to go to Katharine Gibbs Secretarial School in NJ. The skills she learned there served her well at her first secretarial jobs in Manhattan, then later at Montclair Kimberly Academy in Montclair where she worked for almost twenty years in the Office of External Affairs. She was proud of her mastery of the rules of English grammar, and many relied on her to proofread their letters. After the death of her husband in 1978, Terry set up a Montclair chapter of THEOS, a nationwide non-denominational support group for widowed men and women. She ran the group for approximately ten years and created friendships from that work that lasted until her death. She was also involved with the Friends of Barnet and the Montclair Fine Arts Festival.

Terry was predeceased in death by her husband, Donald Pounds, her son Richard, her beloved companions, Arthur Jones and Fred Berinato, and her sisters Lucy and Claire. She is survived by her son Donald Pounds and his companion Patrice Holtzer, daughter Mary Pounds Sisler, daughter-in-law Bette Pounds, sons James Pounds (Bethany) and Thomas Pounds (Liljana), daughter Virginia Pounds, sons Michael Pounds (Catherine) and John Pounds. She was the proud grandmother of sixteen grandchildren and five great-grandchildren: Katy, Austin, Colleen, Connor, Jordan, Jason, Jeremy, Natalie, Anika, Evan, Noah, Ben, Eli, Max, Harper and Nolan; Scarlett, Emma, Carson, Peyton and Wesley. She is also survived by a large extended family and countless friends.

Funeral Services will be held on Saturday, November 9 at 10 a.m. at Immaculate Conception Church, 30 N. Fullerton Ave., Montclair, NJ 07042, followed by interment of ashes at Immaculate Conception Cemetery in Upper Montclair.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Terry’s name to The Release Recovery Foundation at: https://donate.hakuapp.com/donations/new?fundraising_effort=in-loving-memory-of-therese-terry-pounds.

Sister Mary Romana Pifher

12/19/1939 - 7/16/2025

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Obituary For Sister Mary Romana Pifher

Sister Mary Romana Pifher, 85, of the Sisters of St. Francis, died peacefully at 12:25 am Wednesday, July 16, 2025, at St. Francis Home.

She was born on December 19, 1939, in North Auburn, Ohio, to Clarence and Martha (Nedolast) Pifher.

Survivors include two sisters, Mary Kathryn Boes and Janice Boes, both of Upper Sandusky, and sister-in-law, Kathleen Pifher of Tiro, Ohio.

She was preceded in death by her parents; a brother, Carl George Pifher; and two brothers-in-law, Paul Virgil Boes and Richard Boes.

Sister Romana served in food service at St. Joseph Hall, St. Francis Home, and St. Francis Convent in Tiffin; as a housekeeper at Marywood, Miller City, and Custar; as assistant to the executive housekeeper at Lourdes Hospital in Paducah, Kentucky, before attending the Academy of Hair Design in Tiffin. After receiving her license as a cosmetologist, she worked at Nicki’s Hair Fashion and the Head Shed in Tiffin. Later, she served as a beautician for Saint Francis Community. In her final years, she served as a caregiver, campus visitor, and a Minister of Prayer and Service for the Sisters of St. Francis.

Sister Romana enjoyed life in many different ways. She delighted in taking trips with her family and friends, baking, especially breakfast rolls, making snacks and cheese balls, caring for her tomato plants and rhubarb, and tending to her favorite flowers, hollyhocks.

Sister Romana left us with this message: “I have always been of the opinion that if I do my best in everything, God will take care of the rest.”

We, the Sisters of St. Francis, wish to extend our gratitude to the nursing staff and everyone at St. Francis Home for the wonderful care Sister Romana received during her stay there.

A Christian Wake Service will be held on Sunday evening, July 20, at 7 PM via Zoom. At 6:40 PM, a PowerPoint depicting highlights of her life will be shown. The Wake Service can be viewed by clicking on this link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/4194470435?pwd=I01daPRlhs3VGqsWxLus7OkaFpouNV.1&omn=82569736254

Visitation will be Monday, July 21, 2025, from 9-10:30 AM in St. Francis Convent Chapel.

The Funeral Mass will be on Monday, July 21, 2025, at 10:30 AM in St. Francis Convent Chapel. The Funeral Mass will be live-streamed and can be viewed by clicking on this link:

https://youtube.com/live/FvvwneHiVtQ?feature=share

Burial will be in St. Francis Convent Cemetery. Arrangements are under the direction of the TRAUNERO FUNERAL HOME AND CREMATORY, 214 S. Monroe St., Tiffin, Ohio 44883. (419)447-3113. The burial will be live-streamed on the Traunero Funeral Home Facebook page.

Memorial contributions may be made to St. Francis Convent or St. Francis Home.

To get directions, send condolences to the family, order out-of-town flowers, go to www.traunerofuneralhome.com

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