Sr. Delores Kincaide, SL, formerly known as Sister Mary Laurian, a longtime educator, peace and disability activist, died July 30 at the Loretto Living Center of the Loretto Motherhouse in Nerinx, Ky.
A funeral service for the Detroit native took place Aug. 8 at Loretto Motherhouse in Nerinx, Ky. Sister Delores was 93 and just completing the 74th year of her Loretto commitment. A longtime educator and passionate peace and disability activist, Sister Delores served in Texas, Alabama, New Mexico, Missouri and Michigan, including some 20 years in the Archdiocese of Detroit.
Sister Delores was born Delores Evelyn Kincaide Dec. 29, 1929, in Detroit to Mary Louise “Mae” (Mason) and George Gino Kincaide. She was received into the Sisters of Loretto at the Foot of the Cross Aug. 15, 1950. Sister Delores earned a bachelor’s degree in education in 1960 from Webster University, St. Louis, and a master’s in education administration from the University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Ind.
From the 1970s to mid-1990s, Sister Delores served primarily in Detroit, first as a manager at Trombly Home for developmentally challenged women and then as a staff member at a sheltered workshop where several of the women worked. She believed deeply that the work she was created for was to assist people with developmental delays.
Elsewhere, following four years of teaching at a parochial grade school in St. Louis, Sister Delores worked the next 17 years as a teacher and principal at Catholic high schools in Springfield and Kansas City, Mo., El Paso, Texas, and Montgomery, Ala. From 1995 until 2003, she worked for peace and justice with several local advocacy groups in the Kansas City area, including Peace Works. Sister Delores took part in numerous peace events, even traveling to The Hague on a peace mission.
In 2005 she “retired,” moving to Jemez Springs, N.M., where she supported the mission activities of the local Loretto Community and set up a library of spiritual books and materials for local use. In her mid-80s, Sister Delores moved to Loretto Motherhouse where she used her organizing skills to set up art supplies, work on the convent library and start a friendly, competitive card-playing group.
Preceding her in death were her parents and eight older siblings. She is survived by more than two dozen nieces, nephews and their children. Burial was at the Motherhouse Natural Burial Cemetery. Memorials may be made to the Sisters of Loretto for mission, c/o Loretto Motherhouse, 515 Nerinx Road, Nerinx, KY 40049 or as an online gift at www.lorettocommunity.org.
Obituaries for clergy and religious who have lived or served in the Archdiocese of Detroit may be emailed to [email protected]. Obituaries are printed as they are submitted, but may be edited for grammar and style. Detroit Catholic reserves the right to refuse or edit any submissions.
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