Theodis R. Leonard, Retired Principal of Paderewski School and North LawndaleCommunity Activist, Dies
Theodis R. Leonard, Sr., a retired Principal of PaderewskiSchool and community activist, died of natural causes onEaster Sunday morning, April 8, 2012, at sunrise. Hewas78 years old. Mr. Leonard was born February 3, 1934,in Slater, Mississippi to loving parents, Joseph Richard andLelia Leonard, who preceded him in death. He was the fifthof the couple's six surviving children.Mr. Leonard graduated from Mileston High School inTchula, Mississippi in 1953 and enlisted in the UnitedStates Air Force, where he served four years. He obtainedthe rank of Staff Sergeant, and received a specialcommendation for inventing a hand tool to serviceairplanes. He was honorably discharged in 1957. Shortlythereafter, he married his high school sweetheart, EssieTate, and moved to Chicago's North Lawndale community.Mr. Leonard and his wife expressed their love to each otherfor 54 years, 3 months and 12 days. The couple have fouradult children, and were among the first African Americansto purchase a home in North Lawndale's historic K-Town. The couple lived in the Ashburn community atthe time of Mr. Leonard's death.A persistent hunger for education led Mr. Leonard to enroll at Crane Junior College, where he receivedhis AB degree in education. He later received his Masters degree in guidance and counseling fromChicago's Teachers College (now Chicago State University). He completed additional coursework toobtain his Type 75 certification (to qualify for school principal) at Governor's State University.Mr. Leonard began teaching at Gregory School in 1965, and was promoted to guidance teacher, and laterto Assistant Principal. Early on in his career, he served as a program director for a summer youth outreachprogram based in the Urban Progress Center. Mr. Leonard was a mentor to younger teachers and wasinstrumental in bringing programs such as Project CANAL and Adopt A School to help teachers developprofessionally and to supplement the school's public resources. He encouraged several parents to getinvolved with the PTA and Local School Council, and to go back to school to become teachers. Anumber of his former students refer to him as a "father to the fatherless" and credit him for their becomingeducators. Mr. Leonard also served as a representative to the Chicago Teachers Union under theleadership of the late Robert Healey and the late Jackie Vaughn. Mr. Leonard was also instrumental ingetting a representative from the West Side appointed to the Chicago Board of Education(the late MichaelScott, during former Mayor Jane Byrne's administration) and helped organize students, parents andfaculty to keep Gregory School from closing in the late 1980's. He networked with a broad cross sectionof community based organizations, including the Midwest Community Council and Better BoysFoundation. Mr. Leonard was also an active member of the PTA for Daniel J. Corkery School, where hischildren were educated.
Mr. Leonard served as Principal of Paderewski School until his retirement in 2001. He was a foundingmember of the North Lawndale Learning Community, a network of principals, educators and NorthLawndale residents.Mr. Leonard's thirst for education didn't prevent him from serving in the church. He was a member of the Carey Tercentenary AME Church for over 50 years. He served in a number of capacities, includingSunday School Superintendent, a member of the Usher Board, Class Leader, member of the StewardBoard, and member of the Board of Trustees. He was the co-chairman of a scholarship drive in which thechurch sold subscriptions to Johnson Publishing Company magazines. Through his efforts, CareyTercentenary was Johnson Publishing Company's top producing community partner, and several membersof the church were able to get scholarships to offset college expenses.Bishop McKinley Young, who once served as the church's Pastor, helped to organize the Laymen'sOrganization and appointed Mr. Leonard President, a position to which he was elected and re-elected forover 30 years. Under Mr. Leonard's leadership, the organization organized a tutoring program to helpstudents with their reading and math skills while enabling student teachers to get hands on experience.The Carey Tercentenary Laymen's organization was one of the first church auxiliaries in the City of Chicago to develop a computer training program, using TRS-80's and the Commodore 64 computers inthe 1980's. The Laymen's Organization organized the Carey Cardinals baseball team, which was the WestSide's only official Little League affiliate at the time. The team expanded to a league sponsored by theWest Side Recreation Association (WSRA). The Laymen's organization also sponsored sewing classeswhere students learned to sew, and showed off their creations with an annual fashion show. Mr. Leonardworked with his Vice President, Cecil Morris, to develop a Black History Bowl in which youth and adultscompeted on teams to answer trivia questions concerning Black History. The game was eventuallyadopted by a number of schools in North Lawndale. Mr. Leonard was active at the City, 4th District(regional), and Connectional (national and international) levels of the Laymen's organization, focusing oneducational issues and raising funds for scholarships to Morris Brown College in Atlanta, Georgia andWilberforce University in Wilberforce, Pennsylvania. The last project Mr. Leonard spearheaded for theLaymen's Organization was raising funds for a lift for Carey Tercentenary AME Church to make churchservices accessible to frail elderly and disabled church members and visitors.Mr. Leonard was very engaged in the civic affairs of North Lawndale. He served as an informal advisorto a number of elected officials, including Congressman Danny K. Davis, Former State RepresentativeArthur L. Turner and Cook County Commissioner Robert Steele. He networked with other communityactivists from North Lawndale and the AME Church on voter education and registration drives, candidateforums and the election campaigns for the late Mayor Harold Washington. He also worked with the CareyTercentenary AME Church Laymen's organization to coordinate North Lawndale's first political rally forState Senator Barack Obama in his quest for US Senate.Above all of these accomplishments, Mr. Leonard was a family man who believed in attending church onSundays, bringing his children to church and supporting all church auxiliaries with their fundraisers. Hewas a lifetime member of the NAACP, Retired Teachers Association and the Principals andAdministrators Association.Those who cherish his memories include his wife Essie, also a retired teacher; four children, Renee(Floyd)Turner, Valerie F. Leonard, Theodis R. Leonard, Jr. and Curtis Allan Leonard; special familyfriend Kyshia Thompson; a brother, William Humphrey (Juanita) Leonard ;brother-in-law, ThomasStepp; god son, Dr. Raymond H. O'Neal, Jr.; one aunt (LB Holmes); 10 grandchildren, eight great-grandchildren, and a host of nieces, nephews, cousins and friends.
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