Custodian of the Community, School,
Teachers and Students

Levon Sarian was born on January 30, 1934 in Niagara Falls, NY to Vartanoush and Ohanes Sarian, survivors of the Armenian genocide of 1915. In official record keeping, he was registered as Leo. Leo was educated in the Niagara Falls School system and graduated from Niagara Falls High School in 1953. Following graduation, he found employment with Niagara Falls High School and remained with the young people that he knew well. He was married to Marilyn, a citizen of Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada, until 2007. He worked with the Kimberly Clark Corporation for two decades. Kimberly Clark transferred its operations from Niagara Falls, NY to North Carolina. Leo did not elect to be transferred.



Shortly thereafter, he was offered employment
by the Canadian Board of Education as a
Custodian of the A.M. Meyers Secondary School
where he worked until his mandatory retirement at
age 65. The young people at school loved Leo. He
was kind and gentle with everyone he met. Leo
was an outgoing and industrious person. He was a
"custodian" in the broadest sense for the
community, school, teachers and students.

While a young man in school, Leo developed an
extensive newspaper delivery route. He put his
earnings in a dish in the cupboard to help pay for
the family groceries. Leo was a skillful Artisan. He
was knowledgeable about the local flora and
fauna. This knowledge and skills were developed
by observing professional students in the program
of the Canadian Government Department of Parks,
and doing volunteer work at the Montezuma
Natural Reserve in Central New York during
summer vacations. Leo loved gardening in his
backyard and sharing the produce with his friends.
Ontario has tasty peaches from which Leo selected
a particularly good peach and grew a fruit bearing
tree from the stone he had planted.

Leo was an excellent fisherman. He loved
fishing and boating in the Niagara River, Lake
Ontario, Lake Erie and the beautiful Canadian
lakes north of Toronto, Ontario. There is a vivid
memory from Leo's fishing experiences. One
winter day he traveled to one of the lakes in
Northern Ontario for ice fishing. He came home
with an abundant catch of fish. Leo spent much
time scaling, filleting the fish and distributing the
catch to relatives and neighbors. Because Leo was a
skillful fisherman, his peers and young children
enjoyed learning from him. These young children
frequently visited Leo after school. Each spring
A.M. Meyers Secondary School held a kite festival.
Leo was called upon to solve problems imposed by
extraordinary kites.

It was a very sad day when he became the
victim of the deadly disease Diabetes, and his leg
was amputated above the right knee. He went to
New Jersey to enter the Kessler Institute for
Rehabilitation. Leo passed away in February.
Church services were held at St. Leon Armenian
Church in Fairlawn, NJ and prayers said at St.
Sarkis Armenian Church in Niagara Falls. A
graveside service will be held on Friday, June 27th
at 2:00 PM, at Oakwood Cemetery, 763 Portage
Road, Niagara Falls. He will be laid to rest
alongside his parents, uncle and aunt.

Leo is survived by his siblings, Zabel, Suren
and Edward. He is also survived by several
cousins. Donations, in lieu of flowers, may be
made to St. Sarkis Armenian Church, 300-9th
Street, Niagara Falls, NY 14303. Local
arrangements by M.J. COLUCCI & SON
NIAGARA FUNERAL CHAPEL