Conception Leonard

Anchorage resident Conception "Connie" Leonard, 91, died peacefully April 9, 2011, at Providence Alaska Medical Center of natural causes. She moves on to join her mother, Leonor Martinez, and brothers, Felipe and Aurelio Martinez.

Memorial services will be 10 a.m. May 14 at St. Benedict's Catholic Church, 8110 Jewel Lake Road. The Rev. Steven Moore will officiate.

Connie was born Dec. 8, 1919, in Nautla, Veracruz, Mexico.

She emigrated from Mexico to the U.S. in the early 1950s with her spouse, Randolph Leonard.

Connie, a skilled seamstress, was a longtime employee of the Addis Co. of Syracuse, N.Y., until her retirement in the 1980s. After retiring, she lived close to her children, relocating to Florida, Massachusetts and Alaska.

Connie was a devout Catholic and attended church regularly wherever she lived.

She will be remembered for her native Mexican food dishes and recipes that she passed along. She also loved flowers, demonstrating a knack for cultivating beautiful African violets.

She is survived by her three children, Maria (Tom), Jose (Leeanne) and Lucia (Ron) Hensel of Anchorage; along with seven grandchildren, Bryan, Kelley, Michelle, Taylor, Aaron, Adam and Ashley.

In lieu of flowers, please make a donation to the American Alzheimer's Association.

Arrangements were by the Cremation Society of Alaska.