Obituary of Leila Ann McKendry

Leila Ann Wallace McKendry, age 88, died peacefully on September 25, 2007. She was preceeded in death by her husband, Andrew McKendry. She is survived by a daughter, Amy McKendry, son-in-law, David Stokes, and grandson, Daniel McKendry Stokes, all of Kenmore, Washington; stepson Edward McKendry and his wife Evon of Wasilla, Alaska; and brother Dillon Wallace of Williston, Vermont, as well as numerous other family and friends. Born and raised in Beacon, New York, Ann graduated from Beacon High School and went on to attend Cornell University, from which she graduated in 1941 with a Bachelor’s degree in Rural Sociology. As a single woman, Ann worked as a legal secretary in New York City and Washington D.C. and traveled alone to Europe. She was proud to have volunteered for the Adalai Stevenson presidential campaign. She married Andy in 1953 and became the devoted mother of her new husband’s son, Ed; together the three of them lived in Texas and Southern California. She and Andy moved to the Puget Sound region in 1966. Ann and her family made many extensive camping trips in Canada and the United States, and later she enjoyed numerous worldwide travel adventures. She pursued hobbies of birdwatching and writing and worked as a volunteer at the Nisqually Wildlife Refuge. In recent years, Ann appreciated the care and comfort of her many friends and the staff of Panorama City in Lacey, Washington. The family invite friends to join them at Panorama for a celebration of life on October 5, 2007 at 1:00 p.m. in the Coffee Room on the lower level of the Quinault Building. Memorial contributions may be made to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology (159 Sapsucker Woods Road, Ithaca, New York 14850) honoring Ann’s love of nature.