(1937-2025)

Four years after Leo John Kehn and his wife, Mabel Frances King, were married in Toledo, Ohio, the first of their two children entered the world, a daughter they named Barbara Lou.

Barbara was born on February 21, 1937, in Toledo, and was baptized three weeks later at Gesu Church, where her parents were members at the time. The Kehns’ second child, Judith Ann, arrived fourteen months after her sister.

Leo grew up in Toledo and worked on the railroad for a while before becoming a tool and die maker at City Auto Stamping, where he worked for thirty-four years. Mabel was born in nearby Perrysburg, came to Toledo to attend high school at Notre Dame Academy, and worked as a secretary at Auburn Motors until she and Leo married.

Both Kehn children attended Blessed Sacrament School and then Notre Dame Academy for high school. In Sister Joan Leo’s autobiography, she wrote at length about her very devout family home, where prayer was a daily practice. When the children got home from school each day, they would find their mother in her rocking chair saying the rosary, which became a family rosary and, later on, a weekly “Block Rosary” because other families in the neighborhood gathered in the Kehn home to pray.

It was “a very nurturing and happy home,” Sister Joan Leo wrote. Her parents were always interested in what had happened at school each day, and Mabel became a Brownie leader when her daughters got into Scouting.

Read more about Sister Joan Leo (PDF)

Memorial gifts may be made to Adrian Dominican Sisters, 1257 East Siena Heights Drive, Adrian, MI, 49221. Funeral arrangements are being handled by Anderson-Marry Funeral Home, Adrian.

Sister's Memorial Card (PDF)

Vigil and Funeral Recordings

Note: To view recordings with closed captioning, they must be viewed on our public video library rather than through the links below.

Recording of Sister Joan Leo's Vigil Service - After clicking the link, download the recording by right-clicking on the video choosing "Save video as." Worship Aid (PDF)

Recording of Sister Joan Leo's Funeral Mass - After clicking the link, download the recording by right-clicking on the video choosing "Save video as." Worship Aid (PDF)

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