Born at West Louisville, Kentucky, on November 7, 1874, Leona was the daughter of Benjamin and Nannie Burns Bethel. She attended Mount Saint Joseph Academy during the years 1892-1895. At that time, Leona was listed in the school catalogs as having received honors in the majority of her school subjects. Leona, when 32 years old, entered the novitiate at Mount Saint Joseph and after a five-week postulancy, received the Ursuline habit and the name Sister Adeline on May 31, 1907.
Sister Adeline’s teaching apostolate began in the fall of 1907 when she was assigned to St. James School in Louisville and taught the lower grades for seven years. Other teaching assignments took her to the parochial schools at Earlington, Rome, and West Louisville (St. Raphael). In 1925, Sister returned to Mount Saint Joseph and taught the primary grades for three years. She was next assigned to St. Mary Home in Owensboro for 15 years.
With her health failing from diabetes, Sister Adeline returned to Mount Saint Joseph in the fall of 1947. On December 7, 1948, Sister quietly passed away after several months of patient suffering. The funeral Mass was celebrated by Msgr. Gilbert Henninger, chaplain at Mount Saint Joseph. Sister Adeline’s remains are buried in the convent cemetery.