Mary Ellen LeBlanc

Mary Ellen LeBlanc, beloved wife, daughter, sister, and aunt passed away at age 64 on December 1, 2019. Mary Ellen was born on July 11, 1955 in Detroit, Michigan to George and Leona LeBlanc (nee Rucinski). She graduated from Cass Technical High School in Detroit and went on to earn a BA in Anthropology from Wayne State University and a MA in Journalism from the University of Michigan. She traveled extensively throughout Europe including the Greek Island of Santorini where she taught herself to swim. She worked briefly as a journalist with the Tampa Tribune in Florida before settling in Ann Arbor, Michigan where she joined the staff of the Institute of Continuing Legal Education (ICLE) August 1st, 1986 as a proofreader. Since then, she has served in various roles at ICLE, most recently as senior editor. She played a pivotal role in the development management of their first website.

Mary Ellen was a kind and gentle person with a dry sense of humor who loved cats, gardening, and long walks. She lovingly attended to the needs of her mother, commuting from Ann Arbor to Dearborn hundreds of times over the last decade. True to her journalistic origins, she was widely read in her many areas of interest, including health, spirituality, and the environment.

Mary Ellen will be lovingly remembered by her husband Glen DiGaetano, his daughters Erika and Roxanne (Decker Noonan-Schott), mother Leona LeBlanc of Dearborn, MI, sisters Alyce (Robert Brinton) of Port Orchard, WA, Jeanne (Myles Chase) of New York, NY, and brothers Paul, of Denton, TX, and George, Jr. (Jessani Gordon) of Milford, NJ, nieces Cara Brinton, Sofia LeBlanc, and Camille LeBlanc, nephew Andrew Brinton and numerous cousins and friends. She was preceded in death by her father, George J. LeBlanc.

A visitation will be held on Sunday December 15th from 11am – 3pm at Muehlig Funeral Chapel in Ann Arbor.

Memorial donations in memory of Mary Ellen (in lieu of flowers) may be made to the National Fund for Christian Science Nursing, 9300 West 110th Street, Overland Park, KS 66210 (nfcsn.org).