Obituary of Sister Mary Loyola St. Onge

St.Onge " Sr. M. Loyola (Antoinette) died peacefully at Santa Maria Senior Citizens Home on Sunday, September 2, 2007. Sr. M. Loyola was born on July 30th, 1917 at Hartford, Connecticut, USA, daughter of Leo and Florence St.Onge. Predeceased by her parents, her brothers, James and Raymond and her sister, Mary, Sr. is survived by her nieces: Bernadette Christie, Mary Christie-Huerlimann, Loretta Vrzovski, Rose Mary Ryan, Teresa La Pierre and nephews Peter, Thomas and James Christie and John and Jim Murphy as well as the Sisters of Our Lady of the Missions the congregation which Sr. Loyola joined in 1939. Her great talent for teaching was exercised in elementary schools in Lebret and Regina and in high school at Sacred Heart Academy, Regina. An ardent learner as much as she was a great teacher, Sr. took on full time studies in the sixties at the end of which she had obtained her B. Ed. and Bachelor and Master of Arts in English and philosophy from the University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, and her Ph.D. in English from Queens University in Kingston, Ontario. Along the way she received a number of scholarships and awards for her outstanding achievements in her studies. Subsequently, Sr. Loyola joined the faculty of English at St. Thomas More College at the University of Saskatchewan and remained on staff there for 28 years where her brilliant mind and teaching ability were recognized and greatly appreciated by both students and staff alike. Shakespeare was her forte and she had a way of bringing him and his works to life for the students. G.K. Chesterton was also a special love in her life and from the time of the inception of The Chesterton Review in 1975, a prestigious publication of the G.K. Chesterton Society founded at Oxford University in England and now a worldwide institution, Sr. Loyola was managing editor. After retirement from St. Thomas More, Sr. remained in Saskatoon for a few years and continued her work on The Chesterton Review but gradually it became clear that her failing health required that she no longer live alone and thus she came to live at Santa Maria Residence in 2000 and was admitted to long term care at Santa Maria in 2003. We wish to thank all the staff at Santa Maria for their generous and loving care of Sr. Loyola. A prayer Vigil will be held in the chapel of Santa Maria Senior Citizens Home, 4215, Regina Avenue at 7:00 p.m. on Wednesday, September 5, 2007. Funeral Mass will be held on Thursday, September 6th at 9:30 a.m. at Santa Maria Chapel with Father Ken Koep presiding. Interment in Riverside Memorial Park. In lieu of flowers, friends may wish to send donations to the Mission Fund of the Sisters of Our Lady of the Missions, 310 Provencher Blvd., Winnipeg, MB R2H 0G7. An online book of condolences may be signed at www.speersfuneralchapel.com LOGO