Sister Florian Elementary teacher

A mass of Christian burial for Sister Mary Florian Prescott, a member of the Oblate Sisters of Providence for 69 years and a longtime elementary school teacher, will be offered at 7:30 tonight at Our Lady of Mount Providence Convent Chapel, 701 Gun Road.

Sister Florian died Wednesday of heart failure at the order's health-care unit. She was 87.

Born in Frederiksted, St. Croix, Sister Florian received her education at St. Frances Academy in Baltimore and St. Mary's College in Xavier, Kan., where she earned a bachelor's degree in elementary education. In 1921, she entered the Oblate order in Baltimore.

From 1923 to 1971, Sister Florian taught children at elementary schools in South Carolina, Virginia, Alabama, Kansas and the District of Columbia. Between 1941 and 1946, she taught at the St. Pius School in Baltimore.

Suffering from diabetes and deteriorating vision, Sister Florian retired in 1971 and returned to Our Lady of Mount Providence Convent in Baltimore.

Sister Florian is survived by a niece and four grandnieces.