Br. Ignatius Leo

Brother Ignatius began his teaching career in 1881 at St. Patrick's School in Chicago and taught at St. John School in 1882 in the same city. He came to St. Louis, Missouri, in 1884 where he taught at St. Bridget's. His continued frail health began to fail him in 1886 when he was assigned to St. Paul, Minnesota, and a year later to Glencoe, Missouri.  "Reduced to great weakness by his illness he had permission to rise later than the rest of the community, although he never did so.  When asked why he did not stay in bed longer he responded 'when I don't wake up and pray with the rest of the community I don't feel well all day...and my spirit suffers much when I don't do my exercises with the community.'" In November of 1887 he was given permission to return to his family home in Peoria, Illinois. In only a few months he died at age twenty-seven and in only his seventh year as a De La Salle Christian Brother.