Love for school secretary clear as a bell
- Denver Catholic Staff
- Jun 13, 2014
- 2 min read
After 38 years of service, Marilyn LaSalle, 73, retired from St. Louis School in Louisville at the end of the school year. Members of the school and parish community gathered June 1 at Memory Square Park, near the church at 902 Grant Ave., to celebrate her years of dedicated service.
During the celebration, she was presented with several gifts of gratitude including: a papal blessing, flowers, a music box filled with financial donations, a treasure chest, spiritual bouquet and a school bell. “Mrs. LaSalle” was known for ringing the bell each morning to let the children know it was time for the school day to begin, a tradition she will pass on.
“Marilyn deserves recognition for her 38 years of humble service here at St. Louis,” said Sister Edoziem, D.M.M.M. “She is an amiable woman that blesses our busy days with her smiles.”
LaSalle, a lifelong parishioner of St. Louis, not only served the school as secretary for 38 years; she is an alumnus as well. She started first grade at St. Louis in 1946 when it was a four-room, one-story frame schoolhouse, without indoor plumbing.
“I was in third or fourth grade when we added indoor plumbing,” LaSalle recalled in a 2011 interview with the Denver Catholic Register.
LaSalle’s four children—with her husband Michael that she married at St. Louis Church—also attended St. Louis School from 1967-1982; as well as three of her 10 grandchildren. Her daughter, Lori Domenico, currently serves as a secretary in the office.
LaSalle started working at the school part-time in 1976 typing and answering the phone. The position became full-time in 1991. In addition to administrative and accounting work, ordering supplies, and typing the church bulletin, she also served as “fill-in mom and nurse” as needed.
