Sister Mary Aloysia Zimmer SSND

A native of Bruce County, Sister Aloysia graduated from Hamilton Normal School in 1927, and began her teaching career as a School Sister of Notre Dame (SSND), teaching in St. Agatha, St. Clements, Kitchener, Preston and Oakville. She was supervising principal of the Kitchener Separate Schools for sixteen years, principal of St. Mary’s School in Oakville for six years and principal at St. Clement’s School in Preston for three years.

Sister Aloysia was active in the work of teachers’ federations at the regional, provincial, national and international levels. As president of the Ontario English Teachers’ Association, and as a governor of the Ontario Teachers’ Federation from 1966 to 1969, she received the President’s Award, and was made a Fellow of OTF. She represented 90,000 Ontario teachers at two national and three world conferences.

After retiring in 1973 she organized “Project RAISE” (Retirees Assisting in Serving Each Other), and interdenominational, volunteer, nonprofit organization representative of all walks of life, races and creeds, to alleviate the loneliness of elderly people in the Kitchener-Waterloo area.

Sister Aloysia died in the 74th year of her religious profession on December 12, 2002.