The daughter of John and Susanna Alton Stewart, Cecilia was born Sept. 21, 1898, in Uniontown, Ky. When Cecilia’s mother died, Travis, her older sister, took care of Cecilia and her younger sister, Leora, until Leora was school age. In 1911, Cecilia and Leora were sent to Mount Saint Joseph Academy as pupils. Cecilia remained in school until graduation. She was talented and athletic, and a good student. Her beautiful tatting took display prizes in local competitions. She is one of the girls pictured on the first Mount post cards (tennis scene). After her graduation, Cecilia remained at the Mount and entered the novitiate. She received the Ursuline habit on October 24, 1916, and became Sister Leora.
After teaching primary grades at St. Elizabeth School in Curdsville, Ky., her first mission, Sister Leora spent the next year at St. Columba School in Louisville. Missioned to Nebraska, she spent 10 years at Bow Valley, Wynot, Nebraska City, and Snyder. Returning to Kentucky, Sister Leora served in various parochial schools as eighth grade teacher and principal: St. Alphonsus, New Haven, Jeffersontown, St. James, Sorgho, and Vine Grove. She was a creative teacher and gentle disciplinarian, loved and respected by the students and their parents.
Sister Leora’s last mission was St. Leonard School in Louisville, where she was superior and principal. In late March 1964, she consulted a doctor for what she thought was a fractured rib. The doctor became aware of suspicious spots on her face and arms. She was hospitalized and diagnosed as suffering acute leukemia. She remained in St. Joseph Infirmary in Louisville for care. She suffered intensely but was always conscious, deeply grateful for any care and prayed constantly for a happy death. Her prayer was answered. She peacefully entered eternal life on April 8, 1964. Sister’s remains lay in state at St. Leonard Convent. On April 10, Father Joseph Emerich, pastor of St. Leonard Church, celebrated a Requiem High Mass in the parish church. Her remains were brought to Mount Saint Joseph on April 11, 1964. Msgr. Albert Thompson, chaplain, offered the funeral Mass — the first Mass offered in the newly renovated chapel. Sister Leora’s remains are buried in the convent cemetery just eight graves down the row from her Ursuline sister, Sister Cecile.