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This series contains the chronicles and annals of the Congregation of the Sisters of St. Joseph of London, Ontario during their Leamington Mission from 1932 to 1987. There are short historical summaries of the activities within St. Michael’s Parish where the Sisters resided at St. Joseph’s Convent in Leamington from 1932 to 1987. Sister Maureen Meloche, Superior, contributed her drafts and compilation on the history of the London Sisters in Leamington. This series also contains the records of Sister Marie Noel (Elaine) Cole from when she was appointed Pastoral Minister at St. Michael’s Church from 2002 to 2012. There are also news clippings, pamphlets, brochures, booklets, printed pictures, and photographs relating to events in St. Michael’s Parish, activities at St. Michael’s School and Church, and the social and cultural developments of the surrounding region.

This subseries contains the self-authored annals of Sister Marie Noel (Elaine) Cole when she lived in Leamington, Ontario from 2002 to 2012. The topics primarily include her ministry work as the Pastoral Minister for St. Michael’s Church in Leamington. Sister Elaine Cole was born in Leamington and entered the Congregation of the Sisters of St. Joseph of London in 1956. Her Leamington ministry included attending various monthly meetings such as the Pastoral Council Meeting, Pastoral Advisory Council Meeting, Essex Deanery Meeting, Leamington Ministerial Meeting, St. Michael’s Building Fund Committee Meeting, Community Systems Meeting, and the Chapter Preparations Meeting. Her pastoral work also included nursing homes and hospital visits of the sick and infirmed to the Leamington District Memorial Hospital, Erie Shores Healthcare Community Hospital, Sun Parlour Home, Leamington Nursing Home, Erie Glen Retirement Home, and the Mennonite Home. As part of her duties, Sister Elaine Cole also participated in fundraising events for distressed people in Haiti and Peru, and she helped with the Indian Ocean tsunami relief work for Sri Lanka, Sumatra, Indonesia, and Thailand. She also wrote about teaching choir at St. Joseph’s Church in Leamington, helping to assemble the parish float “Light up the Night” in the Santa Claus Parade, decorating St. Michael’s Church for Thanksgiving and Christmas, photographing seniors for the Parish Photo Directory, delivering a speech on International Women’s Day, going to the Auto Show in Detroit (USA), traveling to Windsor for the Windsor Symphony and seeing musicals and films, and sewing doll quilts. In addition, this subseries also includes news clippings from 2014 relating to cultural events in Leamington, a concert fundraiser for St. Michael’s Parish organized by the St. Michael’s Building Committee, and the sale of the H. J. Heinz Company factory plant purchased by the Highbury Canco Corporation.

This subseries contains the chronicles of the Congregation of the Sisters of St. Joseph of London, Ontario during their mission at St. Michael’s Parish in Leamington, Ontario from 1932 to 1987. There are short histories, summaries, and drafts that record the activities of the Sisters at St. Joseph’s Convent in Leamington, and there are lists of Sisters who were stationed at the convent and who served in the Leamington Mission. Sister Maureen Meloche wrote a portion of the chronicles from 1983 to 1987. Topics that have been recorded include the arrival of the first group of teaching Sisters, teaching elementary and junior high-school students at St. Michael’s School, the formation of social support groups for parishioners in need (Separated Divorce Catholic Group, Bereaved Parents Group, and Widows and Widowers Group), fundraising for St. Michael’s Church to help impoverished people locally and internationally (Haiti, Guatemala, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Indonesia), sponsoring and settling refugee families from countries overseas (Cambodia, Iraq, and Myanmar) in Leamington, and assisting with the Catholic Women’s League’s monthly potluck suppers, annual white elephant auction, and Christmas banquet. Other activities the Sisters participated in or discussed include attending various retreats, workshops, and meetings; going to religious conventions; the teachers’ strike of Essex County from March 16 to April 6, 1981; starting and running a poultry business; and the closing and transformation of St. Joseph’s Convent.

There are newsclippings related to the events of St. Michael’s Church such as the history of St. Michael’s Parish, St. Michael’s School golden anniversary, obituary of Sister Mary Rose, the celebration of the Sisters of St. Joseph of London Centennial Year, pastoral appointments, and the annual Christmas bazaar and banquet of the Catholic Women’s League. There are brochures and pamphlets on Catechetical Workshops in November 1967 and a Liturgical Convention in October 1970. There is an invitation to the blessing of St. Joseph’s Church in St. Michael’s Parish in May 1970. There is correspondence from Sister Elaine Cole to Sister Mary Zimmer relating to the altar repository and credence table; and from Sister Mary Denis to Mother Mary Brendan related to the history of the Leamington Mission in the preparation of a report for the General Chapter. In addition, there are also printed pictures and photographs of Sisters, priests, and the interior and exterior of St. Joseph’s Convent of Leamington.