Minadora "Ma" Leonte was the third child born to Procop Axenty and Paraschiva Ungurean in the small village of Cuciurul-Mare, Czernowitz, Bucovina, part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Minadora and her family were part of the large ethnic majority of Romanians living in Bucovina and also decided to join the large emigration of farmers from the Carpathian region to the Central Prairies of Canada.
In the spring of 1899, Minadora, with her parents and three siblings: (John, Sam and Artemiza), made the long journey from Czernowitz, Bucovina to Hamburg, Germany where they boarded a Cunard line cattle boat, the S.S. Brasalia. After several weeks at sea, they landed in Halifax, Nova Scotia on May 9th, 1899. While being processed by Canadian Immigration agents in Halifax, Minadora gained a new brother, George Axenty, who was born on July 20th, 1899. Once the family was processed, they were put on a train headed for Canada's Northwest Territories to a region pioneered by previous Bucovinians just years earlier.
She grew up on the family's homestead near the village of Calder, Saskatchewan where her brothers, Edward and Stuart were born. At the age of 16, she married John Lewontiuk (a rural school teacher) on August 6th, 1911 at Sts. Peter & Paul Ukrainian Orthodox Church in Calder.
Minadora and John had four children born in Canada; Frances, Mike, Marlene and Elana. Between 1914 and 1920, Minadora's parents and the families of all six of her brothers began emigrating to California. Only her sister, Artemiza, would remain behind in Canada after her marriage to Nestor Woroschuk. Each of the families settled next to each other along, what would become, Grant Avenue in Redondo Beach, CA. Mina and John came to Redondo Beach in November, 1920 eventually opening a service station, a small market and a restaurant at the corner of Grant & Pier Avenues (now Aviation Ave.).
They had three more children born in California (Pauline, Trifon and Ted) and changed the family name from Lewontiuk to Leonte on June 26th, 1931 when John became a U.S. citizen. Tragedy struck the family when Mina's husband was killed in a car accident returning from Hawthorne. At the age of 42, Minadora was widowed and left to run the businesses and raise the rest of their children alone. But she turned out to be a very shrewd businesswoman and made several good real estate investments.
Mina loved her family and loved to cook. And with so many siblings, nieces and nephews living on the same street, family gatherings were both large and frequent. At the time she passed away at the age of 84, she had seven children, 14 grandchildren and 15 great-grandchildren.
In the spring of 1899, Minadora, with her parents and three siblings: (John, Sam and Artemiza), made the long journey from Czernowitz, Bucovina to Hamburg, Germany where they boarded a Cunard line cattle boat, the S.S. Brasalia. After several weeks at sea, they landed in Halifax, Nova Scotia on May 9th, 1899. While being processed by Canadian Immigration agents in Halifax, Minadora gained a new brother, George Axenty, who was born on July 20th, 1899. Once the family was processed, they were put on a train headed for Canada's Northwest Territories to a region pioneered by previous Bucovinians just years earlier.
She grew up on the family's homestead near the village of Calder, Saskatchewan where her brothers, Edward and Stuart were born. At the age of 16, she married John Lewontiuk (a rural school teacher) on August 6th, 1911 at Sts. Peter & Paul Ukrainian Orthodox Church in Calder.
Minadora and John had four children born in Canada; Frances, Mike, Marlene and Elana. Between 1914 and 1920, Minadora's parents and the families of all six of her brothers began emigrating to California. Only her sister, Artemiza, would remain behind in Canada after her marriage to Nestor Woroschuk. Each of the families settled next to each other along, what would become, Grant Avenue in Redondo Beach, CA. Mina and John came to Redondo Beach in November, 1920 eventually opening a service station, a small market and a restaurant at the corner of Grant & Pier Avenues (now Aviation Ave.).
They had three more children born in California (Pauline, Trifon and Ted) and changed the family name from Lewontiuk to Leonte on June 26th, 1931 when John became a U.S. citizen. Tragedy struck the family when Mina's husband was killed in a car accident returning from Hawthorne. At the age of 42, Minadora was widowed and left to run the businesses and raise the rest of their children alone. But she turned out to be a very shrewd businesswoman and made several good real estate investments.
Mina loved her family and loved to cook. And with so many siblings, nieces and nephews living on the same street, family gatherings were both large and frequent. At the time she passed away at the age of 84, she had seven children, 14 grandchildren and 15 great-grandchildren.
Minadora "Ma" Leonte was the third child born to Procop Axenty and Paraschiva Ungurean in the small village of Cuciurul-Mare, Czernowitz, Bucovina, part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Minadora and her family were part of the large ethnic majority of Romanians living in Bucovina and also decided to join the large emigration of farmers from the Carpathian region to the Central Prairies of Canada.
In the spring of 1899, Minadora, with her parents and three siblings: (John, Sam and Artemiza), made the long journey from Czernowitz, Bucovina to Hamburg, Germany where they boarded a Cunard line cattle boat, the S.S. Brasalia. After several weeks at sea, they landed in Halifax, Nova Scotia on May 9th, 1899. While being processed by Canadian Immigration agents in Halifax, Minadora gained a new brother, George Axenty, who was born on July 20th, 1899. Once the family was processed, they were put on a train headed for Canada's Northwest Territories to a region pioneered by previous Bucovinians just years earlier.
She grew up on the family's homestead near the village of Calder, Saskatchewan where her brothers, Edward and Stuart were born. At the age of 16, she married John Lewontiuk (a rural school teacher) on August 6th, 1911 at Sts. Peter & Paul Ukrainian Orthodox Church in Calder.
Minadora and John had four children born in Canada; Frances, Mike, Marlene and Elana. Between 1914 and 1920, Minadora's parents and the families of all six of her brothers began emigrating to California. Only her sister, Artemiza, would remain behind in Canada after her marriage to Nestor Woroschuk. Each of the families settled next to each other along, what would become, Grant Avenue in Redondo Beach, CA. Mina and John came to Redondo Beach in November, 1920 eventually opening a service station, a small market and a restaurant at the corner of Grant & Pier Avenues (now Aviation Ave.).
They had three more children born in California (Pauline, Trifon and Ted) and changed the family name from Lewontiuk to Leonte on June 26th, 1931 when John became a U.S. citizen. Tragedy struck the family when Mina's husband was killed in a car accident returning from Hawthorne. At the age of 42, Minadora was widowed and left to run the businesses and raise the rest of their children alone. But she turned out to be a very shrewd businesswoman and made several good real estate investments.
Mina loved her family and loved to cook. And with so many siblings, nieces and nephews living on the same street, family gatherings were both large and frequent. At the time she passed away at the age of 84, she had seven children, 14 grandchildren and 15 great-grandchildren.
In the spring of 1899, Minadora, with her parents and three siblings: (John, Sam and Artemiza), made the long journey from Czernowitz, Bucovina to Hamburg, Germany where they boarded a Cunard line cattle boat, the S.S. Brasalia. After several weeks at sea, they landed in Halifax, Nova Scotia on May 9th, 1899. While being processed by Canadian Immigration agents in Halifax, Minadora gained a new brother, George Axenty, who was born on July 20th, 1899. Once the family was processed, they were put on a train headed for Canada's Northwest Territories to a region pioneered by previous Bucovinians just years earlier.
She grew up on the family's homestead near the village of Calder, Saskatchewan where her brothers, Edward and Stuart were born. At the age of 16, she married John Lewontiuk (a rural school teacher) on August 6th, 1911 at Sts. Peter & Paul Ukrainian Orthodox Church in Calder.
Minadora and John had four children born in Canada; Frances, Mike, Marlene and Elana. Between 1914 and 1920, Minadora's parents and the families of all six of her brothers began emigrating to California. Only her sister, Artemiza, would remain behind in Canada after her marriage to Nestor Woroschuk. Each of the families settled next to each other along, what would become, Grant Avenue in Redondo Beach, CA. Mina and John came to Redondo Beach in November, 1920 eventually opening a service station, a small market and a restaurant at the corner of Grant & Pier Avenues (now Aviation Ave.).
They had three more children born in California (Pauline, Trifon and Ted) and changed the family name from Lewontiuk to Leonte on June 26th, 1931 when John became a U.S. citizen. Tragedy struck the family when Mina's husband was killed in a car accident returning from Hawthorne. At the age of 42, Minadora was widowed and left to run the businesses and raise the rest of their children alone. But she turned out to be a very shrewd businesswoman and made several good real estate investments.
Mina loved her family and loved to cook. And with so many siblings, nieces and nephews living on the same street, family gatherings were both large and frequent. At the time she passed away at the age of 84, she had seven children, 14 grandchildren and 15 great-grandchildren.
Family Members
Siblings
Sponsored by Ancestry
Advertisement
Explore more
Sponsored by Ancestry
Advertisement
