S. Michael (Deborah Clanton) Kilmer (1914-1999) Education , Med Tech, Nursing Home Administration
Sister Michael (Deborah Clanton) was born on November 14, 1914 to Joyce and Aline (Murray) in Mahwah, New York. She entered the community in 1932 with the desire to become a missionary. Her parents were both authors who lectured and published books of poetry. Her mother took up the work after her father died in World War I. She referred to herself as a Gypsy Nun because she moved so much when she was young. Her passion for nature and science may have stemmed from her grandfather who was a pharmacist that founded the Pharmaceutical Department at Johnson & Johnson. In early conversations with her priest, he mentioned the work with the Benedictines and the mission work with China that sparked her interest. She didn’t like the idea of becoming a Benedictine to teach, but got the impression that this community was different. In 1939, she received her B.A. in biology at the College of Saint Benedict, and a minor in chemistry after receiving a certificate in teaching from Dickson State Teachers College in Dickenson in 1937. She taught grade school for a while, but in 1944, she received her medical technology degree from the St. Cloud Hospital and had a long career in medical technology. Living through the polio epidemic and the Great Depression in her early years. She worked in the pathology laboratory and taught chemistry and microbiology at the St. Cloud Hospital School of Nursing and directed the School of Medical Technology for eight years. She had advanced studies in parasitology and cancer cytology. A second career began for her in the 60s as a nursing home administrator in both Albany and Cold Spring. When she was no longer in good health she served as a librarian, receptionist, and clerical worker. Many of her poetry pieces were printed in religious publications.
