Sister St. Leon Ducharme
DUCHARME, Sister St. Leon Eugenie Ducharme was born at St. Joseph, Ontario, on April 13, 1902, to Eli Ducharme and Celima Laporte, St. Joseph, Ontario. She had four sisters, Bernadette (Sister Adele, IBVM), Valencienne, Alexine (Mrs.
Gilbert Turgeon), and Dolores, and eight brothers, Alphonse, Malcome, Raoul, Jean Baptiste, Celse, Jerome, Xyst and Fergus. Eugenie was educated at St. Joseph Separate School and Loretto Academy, Stratford. While teaching in the schools, Sister St. Leon obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Toronto and also a Commercial Specialist Certificate. At the age of thirty, Eugenie entered the Institute of the Blessed Virgin Mary at Loretto Abbey, 101 Mason Boulevard, Toronto, Ontario, on August 15, 1932, received the religious name Sister St. Leon, and made final vows on August 26, 1941. Sister St. Leon taught at Our Lady of Perpetual Help School, St. Helen School, St. Monica School, and St. Thomas Aquinas School, Toronto, St. John School, Weston, and St. Patrick School, Niagara Falls, Ontario. She was principal of St. Matthew School, Toronto, of Sacred Heart School, Guelph, and Sts. Peter and Paul School, Hamilton. It was in Hamilton, that her cancer was diagnosed. Her organizational ability was only equalled by the ready human interest she showed in pupils and parents. In the community, she was appreciated for her keen sense of humour, her devotion to duty and boundless generosity. The younger Sisters who taught with her and were trained by her loved her dearly. When she died, she left a legacy of friendship, imitation and love. On April 18, 1961, five days after her fifty-ninth birthday, Sister St. Leon died at St. Joseph's Hospital, Hamilton, and is buried at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery, Hamilton, Ontario. She had been a member of the Institute of the Blessed Virgin Mary for nearly twenty-nine years. |