ABSTRACT
Despite enduring a life of hardship and an untimely death at only twenty-four, Kateri Tekakwitha exhibited Greenleaf’s servant leadership. Born to a Mohawk chief and an Algonquin mother who was baptized Catholic, she lost her family at age four due to a smallpox epidemic, changing her life forever. Against the dominance of traditional female roles in her Native American culture, Tekakwitha did not marry, and through personal awareness and persuasion to follow her own path, devoted her life to God despite judgment and torment. She exhibited signs of servant leadership early on, helping those in her village while keeping her religious beliefs secret until her formal baptism in 1676. After increased persecution and ridicule she fled to Canada in 1677. Tekakwitha spent her remaining years at the Catholic mission of St. Francis Xavier, healing the sick and listening to the poor and teaching children. She envisioned commitment to others’ growth and building a community, before her death in 1680. During her short life, Kateri Tekakwitha exemplified servant leadership through empathy, conceptualization, foresight, and stewardship in addition to the aforementioned traits.
