A beloved member of the Grey Nuns of the Sacred Heart, Sister Virginia L. Carley, died Dec. 24. She was a longtime member of the English faculty at D’Youville College in Buffalo, N.Y.

Sister Carley, formerly Sister Mary Christopher, was born Dec. 2, 1930, daughter of Carver David Carley and the late Natalie Kiernan Carley, in Nashville, Tenn. She attended grade and high school at Christ the King, Atlanta, and entered the Grey Nuns of the Sacred Heart in 1949. She later returned to Atlanta and taught at Christ the King School and at D’Youville Academy in Chamblee.

Sister Carley earned her B.A. in English at D’Youville College in 1955 and received her M.A. in English from the University of Notre Dame, South Bend, Ind. in 1967. She pursued additional graduate studies at Notre Dame from 1979 until 1981.

In May, 1985, Sister Denise A. Roche, president of D’Youville College, and the board of trustees conferred upon her the doctorate of humane letters for her dedication and service to almost two decades of students, faculty and administrators.

In an obituary sent by the college she is called a “living symbol of Marguerite D’Youville, foundress of the Grey Nuns, sharing the same vision of service, love and dedication in the college community…She was loved by students, faculty and administrators alike.”

Among awards she received were the outstanding faculty award from D’Youville in 1972 and 1983, service recognition awards and a National Outstanding Educators of America Award in 1972.

A Bible vigil service was held at the college on Dec. 26 and a Mass of Christian Burial was held on Dec. 28 in Holy Angels Church, Buffalo. Interment was in Mt. Olivet Cemetery in Tonawanda, N.Y.

In addition to her father Sister Carley is survived by five brothers, Thomas L., Atlanta; John Philip, Winter Park, Fla.; F. Burke, Indiana Harbor Beach, Fla.; Carver David, II, of Clearwater, Fla., and Stephen F., of Marietta.