Name/Title
Loretto Academy Graduating Class, 1940Entry/Object ID
SM.0066Description
The 1940 graduating class of Loretto Academy in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan (back row). The children in the front row participated as flower girls. Graduates, from left to right, are Flora Krell, Beatrice Macrellis, Audrey Taylor, Leicester Atkinson, Marion Tobias, Shirley Christie, Rhea Taylor, Reita Osmar, Georgette Winters and Margaret Donnelly. Flowers girls, from left to right, are Peggy Sutton, Patsy Eagle, Anna Marie Blain, Johanna Depeau, Aleyn Tobias, Mary Lou L' Hullier, Phyllis Keller, Bobby Martin, Eileen Eagle and Jean Moriarity.
In 1896, IBVM Sisters traveled to Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan to begin an education ministry at St. Mary's Parish. Three years later, Loretto Academy was constructed and opened as a convent, school and boarding house. In the following decades, the Sister's ministry grew to include additional schools and programs. Despite the closure of Loretto Catholic Central High School and St. Mary's Elementary School in 1971, the IBVM maintained an active role in local education into the 1980s.Context
Born in 1585 in North Yorkshire, England, Mary Ward founded the Institute of the Blessed Virgin Mary in 1609. Focused on education, the Sisters developed their ministry despite significant political, spiritual and material challenges. In 1880, the Canadian Mission of the IBVM established a presence in Illinois, and the following year, the IBVM North American Branch was created. In 1892, their ministry expanded into Chicago, and by 1896, the Sisters had opened a school in Michigan. Over the following decades, further growth resulted in ministries in California and Arizona, both of which began in 1949. In the 21st Century, the IBVM and its companions are active in Illinois, Wisconsin, Michigan, California and Arizona.Lexicon
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Religion, Religious Organizations, Sisters of Loretto, Photos, Photographs, Pictures, People, Graduation, StudentsReproductions
Notes
Please contact the IBVM Archives (archives@ibvm.us) for further information or materials requests.