Marie Leonardini

September 9, 1941 - November 5, 2023

After a brief illness, on November 5, 2023, in Sacramento, where she lived for 48 years. The elder daughter of the late Michael Andrew Carella and Viola Marie Carella (née Morucci), Marie was born on September 9, 1941, in San Francisco. She graduated from St. Matthew School in San Mateo in 1955, and Notre Dame High School in Belmont in 1959. In 1963, she completed a Bachelor of Arts degree at Marquette University in Milwaukee and a Master’s degree from the Graduate Theological Union at Berkeley, in 1989. Marie taught at Holy Spirit Parish School in Sacramento from 1989 to 1994.

In 1971, Marie married Raymond Leonardini, and together they raised two daughters: Annemarie Braun, born 1972, and Marisa Bender, born 1974. She is survived by them and her sons-in-law, Robert Braun and Michael Bender, and her grandsons: Daniel Braun (age 17), and Alex (18) and Aidan (14) Bender. Marie is pre-deceased by her older brothers—Michael Jerome (late Kathleen) and John (Maryanne) and is survived by her four younger siblings—Anthony (late Franca), Paul (Anne), Vincent, and Christina (Kenneth Waldeck).

As this life drew to a close, she looked forward to the next, believing utterly in the words of St. Teresa of Avila: “She whom God possesses wants for nothing.”

A celebration of Marie’s life will take place on Saturday, January 13, 2024, from 11 am to 12 pm, at Saint Ignatius Loyola Catholic Church, Sacramento, CA. Donations in her memory may be made to Sister Nora’s Place Program by Sacramento Loaves & Fishes.