Grace Lemieux

Grace Maria Lemieux, on Saturday, February 15th, 2025 passed peacefully at her residence. She was the daughter of the late William Henry Lemieux and Gertrude Marcelin Lemieux; Maternal grand parents were Leopold C. Marcelin and Cecilia Turner Marcelin and paternal grandparents were August Lemieux and Frances Falgoust Lemieux. Sister of Melba LemieuxNevills( Earnest); aunt of Larry Eugene Nevills (Telisha), IriJeanne Nevills Griffin-Clark (Kevin) and Akia Janai Nevills. Grace was the great aunt of Emari, Larry, Landon Nevills, JaRiah and Jilahn Matthews and KevIri Rose Ann Griffin. Also she was special great aunt to Kailyn and Sydney Vinning. She was god mother to niece Akia, Elena Fernandez and Kyla A. Stewart. She loved each and every one of them dearly and treated them all as her own. She is also survived by a host of relatives and faithful friends. Grace Lemieux, a retired teacher, worked for 34 years in the New Orleans Public School System. She received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Elementary Education (‘71), Early Childhood Certification (‘73); Master of Arts degree in Counseling and Guidance (‘79) and completed the Plus 30 hours in Administration and Supervision (‘82). All degrees were earned at Xavier University of Louisiana. Additionally, she took an Introductory Computer Course At the Learning Institute at Dillard University ( ‘84) and Computer Literacy, Xavier University (‘87). While in the public school system, Grace had teaching assignments at Hynes, Lakeview, and Bradley Public Schools. She served as an Elementary Teacher at Fisk Howard ‘94–‘98, where she was Lead Teacher of SAY YES Program ‘ 96- ‘98 and Technology Coordinator ‘97-‘98 ,McDonogh 39 ‘78- ‘94. Served as Ranking Teacher ‘87- ‘88 ‘89- ‘90 ‘93-‘94. She also served on the SACS Steering Committee, ‘82 -‘84 , and Chaired School Sacs Committee ‘94–‘95.Additionally, she was a Specialist in Educational Technology and Interim Help Desk Administrator, July ‘99- June 2000. Grace held numerous memberships : Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development(ASCD ); International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE); Louisiana Association for Computer Using Educators (LACUE); South East and Islands (Regional Technology in Education Consortium (Teacher Advisor) (SESL) and Consortium for School Networking (CoSN) She earned numerous awards including NOPS Teacher of The Year ‘88-88, 94-95, 96-97 and NOPS Mentor Teacher ‘94-95; ‘“Association for Supervisors and Curriculum Development “(1989); “Principals Perfect Attendance Award” at Fisk Howard Elementary School (1993); “New Orleans Public Schools Instructional Technology Award for completion of “ Louisiana Intech”; “Teacher of The Year Area Il 1994-1995”; Consortium Member - Louisiana Department of Education Region 1- Pre -Service / In Service Teachers (‘ 95); Title 6 Math/ Science Participation Award 1996”; “Kappa Phi Kappa Professional Education Honor Society “ Excellence in Teaching” 1996-1997. “Teacher of the Year; “ Goals 2000/ LaNIE Project Chairperson- Professional Development ( Louisiana Networking and Infrastructure in Education); LACUE Board Secretary (‘94); Membership of the Leadership Team of LINCS ( Learning Intensive Networking Communities For Success) at H. C. Schaumburg Elementary (2003) to name a few. She received a Grant from Polytechnic Institute Women’s Alliance Computer Equity Project Seminar. She was a Grant Recipient/ Honor’s Teacher’s Program - NASA Education. Since her retirement, she has worked in the Archdiocese of New Orleans at Henriette Delille Middle School, in the Office of Catholic Schools, and St. Leo the Great Catholic School. During this time, she continued her memberships and awards including “ The Summer Institute For Catholic Educational Leadership having completed “ The Journey of Spiritual Leadership” 2018; Catapult Learning “ Using Technology in Math and Science Classes “- 3 Credit Hours; “ Certificate of Appreciation for participation in the Gospel Extravaganza awarded at St. Katharine Drexel Catholic Church June 2015. Within the Catholic school community of the Archdiocese of New Orleans, Grace worked in the Office of Catholic Schools and received Religion Education Credentials through the Archdiocese Office of religious Education. In 2012, she was accepted in the First Institute of Lay Ecclesial Ministry program at Notre Dame Seminary completing the program with a commission to serve as a Lay Ecclesial Minister in 2015. Grace was an active member of St. Katharine Drexel Catholic Parish, formerly a member of St. Francis de Sales Catholic Church where she began serving in ministry as a lector, catechist , and later serving as Director of Religious Education. Since 2007, she has continued to serve in ministry at St. Katharine Drexel Parish as lector, Parish Catechetical Leader, and served on the Parish Council. She likewise was a teacher at Holy Ghost Catholic School where she served as the school’s Religion Coordinator. Grace felt that her extensive background of working with children, catechists, and classroom teachers underlines the continuous need for services in the area of religious education with the parish, coupled with the need for parish adult faith formation. Her life’s work and dedication continued this mission through December 2024. In recognition of Leadership and Dedicated Service to the Church, in her parish and throughout the Archdiocese of New Orleans she received The Order of St. Louis Medallion ( 2000) conferred by Francis Schulte, Archbishop of New Orleans. If you, want to know one of the best words to describe Grace .. it would be “ on the move!” She certainly could not have accomplished all of the accolades listed staying still. She was rarely at home. Often times out of the city, the state and even the country! Whether vacationing visiting friends, attending the many conferences for the organizations she belonged to or simply traveling the highways she was “on the move” with her friends from the 13th Ward, colleagues, the gang on Athis Street, her club members of Les Amies, classmates of the classes of ‘67 and ‘71 and the children of the church when the chaperoning them to the “ 100 Black Men “ Conference or taking her nieces and nephews, great nieces and nephews, god-children, and adopted families and family members on back to school shopping trips, lunch engagements, and special “ field trips” she created. Talk about the energizer bunny! She often tells the story of attending the Zulu Ball, as Mardi Gras was one of her favorite seasons and apparently it was time for the members to do their second line of sorts! Grace though a float rider for many years, hopped up and joined right in haven’t patiently waited through the pageantry. She often told the story of how one of the members never missing a beat danced her right out of the line .. back to her seat! Not yet, Grace! She loved her city and was very opinionated, and rightfully so, on the education system, the political climate, the church, her uptown neighborhood, and the comings and goings of the family kids and her students assuring they were on the right track for success. Her goals were harmony, righteousness, and peace. This is how she lived and this is how she was blessed throughout her life. Relatives and friends of the family, students and colleagues past and present of McDonogh 39, H.C Schaumburg Elementary, and Fisk Howard Elementary as well as teachers and classmates of Blessed Sacrament Catholic School, Xavier Prep/ St. Katharine Drexel Prep and Xavier University, and past parishioners of St. Francis De Sales Parish and parishioners of St Katharine Drexel Parish, Blessed Sacrament/ St. Joan of Arc Parish, Members of the Saint Vincent De Paul Society and parishioners of churches of the Archdiocese of New Orleans and Sisters of the Holy Family and Sisters of The Blessed Sacrament are invited to attend the viewing and Mass of Christian Burial at St. Katharine Drexel Catholic Church, Saturday, March 8, 2025.

Grace Lemieux

February 15, 2025