By Henry Bury The Intelligencer For someone who wanted to be a priest, Ron DeLeskie sure has influenced many families in his 35 years in education. He's credited with writing the family life education for Ontario's Catholic schools early on in his career with the Metro Toronto Separate School Board and then developing a similar program with the Hastings- Prince Edward Counties Roman Catholic Separate School Board. He also was co-ordinator of the local board's religious edu- cation department for several years before becoming a superin- tendent in 1986. DeLeskie, 55, is retiring the end of this month after 24 years with the local board. He's the first to acknowledge that through his involvement with family life and religious education over the years, he's "still kept the same sort of inter- est and values but just ran in a slightly different path" from priesthood. "I have a real love and appre- ciation for what Catholic schools have done and can do for chil- dren and their families," he said. "The values we offer are ones that help young people be good people and help them find mean- ing in their lives." DeLeskie was 20 years old when he began studying to be a priest at a novitiate in Keswick, Ont. Within that first year, he realized priesthood wasn't his vocation but teaching was. So the Sydney, N.S. native enrolled at Ontario Teachers' College in Toronto in 1961. "The whole dimension of learning was important to me and still is. I wanted to see young people learn," he said Wednesday. DeLeskie's first teaching assignment was with the Metro Toronto Separate School Board in 1962. After three years of being in the classroom, he was appointed a consultant in reli- gious education and, in 1968, became the first co-ordinator of the family life education depart- ment at the board. "I wrote the first family life program for kindergarten stu- dents in Ontario's Catholic schools that year. And I estab- lished that program for Grades 1 to 8! students over the next sever- al years," he said proudly. EteLeskie left Toronto and joined the Hastings-Prince Edward system in 1973 as its co- ordinator of religious education and family life. He helped intro- duce and implement the family life program at the board for ele- mentary and secondary school students. In 1976-78, he took a stint as principal at St. Gregory's School in Picton before returning to the board office as co-ordinator of religious education. He was appointed education superinten- dent in 1986. He's one of two superintendents with the board. "I've enjoyed all my positions in education," DeLeskie said. "In a small school board, you get to do everything as superintendent, including curriculum, commit- tee work and special educa- tion...^ this board, you're very close to the staff and parents and, at times, close to students." DeLeskie said he's also fortu- nate to have his wife, Mary, work with him at both school boards. Mary DeLeskie retired two years ago as religious educa- tion consultant. DeLeskie said he'll treasure his many accomplishments into retirement, including receiving the Father Leo Lafreniere Award for Family Life Education in 1978 and the provincial award for religious education in 1986.