Thomasina E. Leafgren

Thomasina E. “Thommye” Leafgren, 75, Stevens Point, a
retired elementary school teacher, died Friday, May 27, 2016, at Ministry St.
Joseph’s Hospital in Marshfield due to a massive stroke.
A Funeral Mass will be held at 11 a.m., Saturday, June 4, at
St. Stanislaus Catholic Church of Holy Spirit Parish in Stevens Point. Burial
will be in her family burial space in Braddock Cemetery in Braddock, Pa.
Visitation will be at Boston Funeral Home in Stevens Point from
3 to 7 p.m. Friday, June 3, and at the church from 10 a.m. Saturday until the Mass.
Condolences may be offered online at
www.bostonfuneralhome.com.
Mrs. Leafgren was born Oct. 20, 1940, in Braddock, Pa., the
middle child of the late Frank and Mary (Plavecki) Scalise. She grew up in
Turtle Creek, Pa., attended St. Colman Catholic Grade School and graduated from
Turtle Creek High School.
She pursued a degree in elementary education at Slippery
Rock State University in Slippery Rock, Pa. She later received a master’s degree
in counseling from Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, Pa.
She was married to Frederick Leafgren Jan. 28, 1967, at St.
Colman Catholic Church in Turtle Creek, Pa.
After the marriage, she joined her husband, residing in
Stevens Point, where they raised a family.
Her teaching career began in Penn Hills, Pa., prior to
moving to the Stevens Point area. She taught at Howe Elementary School in
Wisconsin Rapids before taking a position that opened in
the Stevens Point Area Public School District. She taught at Jackson, McDill
and Jefferson elementary schools.
After 52 years of teaching approximately 1,300 children
(sometimes multiple generations of students), she retired in 2014.
An outdoor puppet theater was built in her honor at
Jefferson School.
Survivors include her husband, Fred; one daughter, Deanna
(Joshua) Kepler, St. Paul, Minn.; one brother, Joseph (Joe Carol) Scalise,
Athens, Ga.; nieces; and nephews.
She was also preceded in death by one brother, Charles.