Sister Julia Knazik, SS.C.M. died at Emmanuel Center in Danville on Sept. 28, 2024. She was born in Chtelnica, Slovakia on July 8, 1931, to Victor and Helen (Durdy) Knazik. Julia Victoria Anna Knazik had two younger siblings, Mary, and Frank. She attended St. John Nepomucene Grade School in Manhattan, where the Sisters of Saints Cyril and Methodius taught; St Jean Baptiste High School in Manhattan for two years, and Saint Cyril Academy in Danville.

After graduating from Saint Cyril Academy in June 1950, she worked as a typist in a New York hospital, then entered the Sisters of Saints Cyril and Methodius on Feb. 2, 1951, and was professed on Aug. 13, 1953, and made her Final Profession on Aug. 15, 1958. Her first recollection of wanting to be a Sister came in grade school. Sister Julia and her family lived in an apartment building across from St. John's Convent in Manhattan where the Sisters of Saints Cyril and Methodius lived. Julia became curious about the Sisters. Because their chapel faced 66th Street, all those who passed by were able to hear the Sisters chanting Morning and Evening Prayer in Latin. Sister Julia said, "My friend and I were fascinated and often tried to meet in front of the convent at prayer time to listen to the Sisters. No doubt my vocation had its roots in this experience. My desire to become a Sister was confirmed by the fact that I had them as teachers in both elementary and high school. I will never forget the kindness and good example of the Sisters who taught me at St. Cyril Academy."

When Sister Julia entered the Sisters of Saints Cyril and Methodius she expressed a desire to become a nurse. After 3 years of teaching in Pittston, Pa., Perth Amboy, NJ and Shamokin, Pa., and six years as a nurse's aide at Villa Saint Cyril in Highland Park, Ill., she began her nursing studies first at Gwynedd-Mercy College where she received an associate degree in nursing, and then at Bloomsburg University receiving a bachelor's degree in nursing in 1983. Sister Julia then served as a nurse and Director of Nursing at Maria Joseph Manor for 23 years, and as a nurse at Maria Hall for 18 years.

Sister Julia Knazik was known for her dedication to religious life and for sharing its benefits with others, especially through her kindness and good humor. In 2013 when she celebrated her 60th anniversary as a Religious Sister, she emphasized her continued love in the life as a Sister of Saints Cyril and Methodious by saying, "Each day I thank God for the gift of my vocation as a Sister, and the opportunities it gives me to grow through the friendships I have made and the living out of my spiritual life and commitment to God's Call."

Sister Julia is survived by her sister, Mary Raffel; her sister-in-law, Barbara Knazik, and by nephews and nieces.

Funeral services and a Mass of Christian Burial will be held Saturday, Oct. 5, at 1:30 p.m. at Maria Hall in Danville, followed by burial in the Sisters' cemetery.

Donations in memory of Sister Julia can be made to the Sisters of Saints Cyril and Methodius, Villa Sacred Heart, 1002 Railroad St., Danville, PA 17821.

Funeral arrangements have been entrusted to the Brady Funeral Home of Danville. Please send messages of remembrance and support to BradyFuneralHome.com.