Leona Frances Hampe was born on May 6, 1901 to Nicholas and Clementine Hampe, the fifth of seven children. Her place of birth was Theilman, Minnesota, later moving to Rock Rapids, Iowa when she was 3 years old. Little is known of of her childhood and early adult life, other than her pursuit of education. She said of herself that she was very active in tennis, music and drama.

After four years of high school, she attended St. Mary of the Woods College in Terre Haute, Indiana. Her father intervened after 3 years and encouraged her to "take up Commercial Law, so I transferred to the Gibbs Secretarial School in Boston, Massachusetts." After her graduation she was a Legal Advisor at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. Her work just before entrance into the monastery was as a Legal Secretary in Chicago. Then the Lord intervened... attracting her to the Benedictine Sisters through our Mundelein Convent.

She entered at Clyde on December 21, 1930, was professed on September 17, 1932 and made Perpetual Vows on February 5, 1938. For the most part she spent her life writing in the C.D. Dept. She was an excellent writer and worked hard. She was also assistant editor of Tabernacle & Purgatory for several years. She was not only a creative writer, several of her poems had been published, but she tried her skill at painting, violin and piano.

Sister told someone that she found it very difficult to be patient and peaceful. She found her infirmities hard to bear and often she lost patience with herself and with others. Whenever she happened to have some difficulty with another she was very quick to ask for pardon. 

About a month or so before she died she was in the hospital for tests which proved that she had cancer which was inoperable. From this time on a great change came over sister in her attitude towards others, towards herself and her relationship to God. What she was unable to attain through her own efforts God seemed to give to her as a gift... that is great gentleness, kindness and patience and peace.

Sister was anointed a week prior to her death, and patiently waited for her Lord to call her Home. When asked if she was going home to Heaven before Sr. M. Anselma Meyers' golden jubilee which was to be celebrated in St. Louis on June 4th, Sister replied: "After.".

As the beautiful Feast of Corpus Christi drew to a close, so did the life of our dear Sr. M. Electa Surrounded by many of her monastic community, Sister M. Electa died peacefully at 9:10 PM on Sunday, June 5, 1988.