The Reverend Canon Winnie Bolle, the first woman ordained to the priesthood in the State of Florida, died peacefully on Friday, June 2, 2023 in Boca Raton, FL.

Mother Winnie was a native of Jamaica and was made a deaconess in that diocese in 1969. After moving to Miami, FL, in the fall of 1979, she became the first woman ordained to the priesthood in the Episcopal Church in Southeast Florida and the State of Florida. She was ordained by Bishop Schofield on June 5, 1982. Many in the Episcopal Church in Southeast Florida changed their position on the issue of women’s ordination largely, if not entirely because of the life, ministry, and the person of the Reverend Canon Winnie Bolle.

Mother Winnie served at Trinity Cathedral Miami, and she was a chaplain at Jackson Memorial Hospital, also in Miami. In retirement she remained active, especially at the Chapel of Saint Andrew in Boca Raton, FL where she and her husband became integrated into the community. She was a devoted member of the Daughters of the King, and in 1996 she was made an honorary canon of Trinity Cathedral. Throughout her ministry Mother Winnie was a much sought-after teacher, EFM mentor, quiet-day and retreat leader, spiritual director, preacher, and friend to many. She was married to the Reverend Canon Victor Bolle in 1972, who predeceased her in 2005.

Southeast Florida Bishop Peter Eaton will celebrate the Requiem Mass and Burial of the Reverend Canon Winnie Bolle at Trinity Episcopal Cathedral on Saturday, August 19, at 11 a.m.