Leslie Andersen, age 70, of Woodridge, IL, passed away on June 29, 2023, at Lutheran General Hospital while surrounded by her adoring family. Leslie was born in Camp Kilmer, New Jersey, daughter of Sylvia Newman and George Howard. She was incredibly loquacious and an accomplished student. She was a proud and active alumna of Girls High in Philadelphia (Class of 1970) and Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts (Class of 1974). Leslie graduated from Smith with majors in African American studies and Religion. She received her Master’s of Education in counseling from the University of Massachusetts Amherst soon after leaving Smith.
Leslie married Gary Davis in 1974 and welcomed their son, Jeffrey, in January of 1981. They resided in Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Illinois. Leslie later moved to Iowa, married David Andersen in 1988, then they moved to the Chicagoland area settling in Downers Grove for over 20 years. David and Leslie welcomed their daughter, Juliana, in November of 1991.
Leslie’s professional career was focused on helping and guiding others through their careers. Her roles included working as a career counselor at the University of Iowa, Assistant Director of the Career Development Office at the Illinois Institute of Technology, and concluded her career at University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policy where she worked as Associate Director of the Career Development Office. She was instrumental in supporting thousands of students to secure employment and develop their career paths, and she stayed in touch with many of them throughout the years. She was an exceptional advisor and proud of her positive impact on those she served.
Leslie was an active member of St. Barnabas Episcopal Church and regarded herself as a “cradle Episcopalian”. She supported many organizations, her most notable being Smith College, NPR, PBS, ASPCA, and the Morton Arboretum. She was an advocate for diversity, inclusion, and equal rights and worked tirelessly to help those in need. Leslie was worldly and traveled frequently.
Leslie is survived by her two children, Jeffrey (Tracy) Davis and Juliana (Dara) Lipowski, along with her three siblings, George, Angelique, and Gabrielle Howard. Leslie was a self-proclaimed “cat lady” and a loyal and valued member of the Smithies Who Love Cats Facebook group. She is survived by her cat, Kali.
Leslie is predeceased by her father George Howard (2005), mother Sylvia Howard (2012), brother Gregory Howard (2014), and husband David Andersen (2018).
Leslie was a deeply compassionate, strong, selfless, and charitable woman. She saw life as being full of opportunities and saw the best in everyone. Leslie became fast friends with every person and every cat she met. She has friends all over the globe and has touched countless lives; she will be truly missed.
Celebration of Life Service: Saturday, July 8, 2023, at St. Barnabas Episcopal Church, 22W415 Butterfield Rd, Glen Ellyn, IL 60137 at 2:00 pm. Refreshments will be served after the memorial. The service will be streamed on the St. Barnabas website: www.barnabasencourager.org.
In lieu of flowers or gifts, the family requests a donation to the “Leslie Andersen ’74 Scholarship Fund” at her alma mater, Smith College. This fund was created to provide a scholarship opportunity for students in need.
You may make a one-time donation or a recurring pledge online at www.smith.edu//giving or you may mail a check to:
Smith College Gift Accounting
33 Elm Street
Northampton, MA 01063
***Please specify in the donation special instructions that this gift is for the “Leslie Andersen ’74 Scholarship Fund” to ensure it is correctly attributed to
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What can we says, other than she will always be with us.
Beautiful obituary! I’ll always cherish every moment I shared with my dear friend! We laughed and gossiped and enjoyed art, music, poetry, and nature together. Her passion for helping students and friends was unparalleled and inspirational. Leslie, I’ll miss you!
My condolences to all her friends and family, I will miss my Sister as well. May we have some solice in knowing she lived her life to her best ability, and touch many lives along the way. Now as well, she is blessed that she is in heaven.
Leslie you will forever be in my thoughts and the times we shared at the Harris School. You will be missed by so many of us.
I have no words to described about Leslie , met her first time at her best friends Pradnya and Satish’s house. By then I was so curious to see her as I heard so much about her, her accomplishments, her helping any one , her fearless and loving, caring nature.. Praying God to give strength to her children , family and close friends. My deepest sympathy. 🙏💐🙏
My sorrow at your loss. May Leslie’s memory remain a blessing always.
Leslie, such a vibrant spirit, will be sorely missed! Prayers of comfort to all her family and friends!
I’m remembering Leslie reaching out to me with kindness and encouragement when I was new to the book club. Her genuine caring spirit and speaking her mind continued to bless me through the years. She also gave me a greater appreciation for nature by hanging out at the Auboretum together.
What a Beautiful, Vibrant, Joy-filled Spirit-Being!
I send my sincere condolences so Leslie’s family and loved ones. Rest well Leslie.
I was incredibly saddened to hear about Leslie’s passing…She was always so thoughtful and kind, being so nice to all the students came to career service for help. I am grateful for her support and help to me at Harris. She will truly be missed.
Leslie has had such an impact on my life. She generously gave up her charming single room in her senior year at Smith to be my roommate and her giving never stopped! I cherish every moment I had with her and pray that we see each other again. May her family and friends find comfort in a life well-lived.❤️
I cant’ believe that after just a couple of weeks of our lovely visit with Leslie, I have to write this. I met Leslie at IIT where we worked together and we instantly became friends. She came to our wedding in Paris in 2005, and offered to house us when we moved to New York. She was generous and selfless and just simply very fun and positive person to be around! I will forever miss you and cherish the memories that we had together. I will also remember her through my Irises in my garden in New York, which she brought over when she visited me. Love to all Krisztina
Our prayers for you and your family, Leslie! It was a joy and honor to work with you. I will miss your sense of humor, impeccable grammar, and dedication to serving others. May your Memory be Eternal!
I am so sorry for your loss, Jeffrey, Tracy, Juliana, and Dara. I was blessed to have known Leslie for more than 40 years. In the early years of our friendship we exchanged confidences, ventilated about our work-related challenges, and danced with wild abandon to Prince’s “1999.” More recently we have shared each other’s joy as we have witnessed our children establishing families and successfully marking off adult milestones.
Leslie was loving, supportive, and loyal. She was open to new ideas and experiences. She cultivated and appreciated beauty—both natural and man-made. I will miss Leslie, as will all whose lives she touched. I only hope that the light and comfort she brought to us — her friends and family members — will continue on as we cherish our memories of her.
I was in Leslie’s homeroom in high school and remember her to be a person who was sweet and caring. I truly admired all the things she accomplished in her lifetime. I am so very sorry for your loss and am sending prayers of comfort and peace to all who loved her.
We are so very sorry for your loss. I last saw Leslie at my cousin Rachel’s wedding in SD, where she took a beautiful picture of my son. Every time I look at that picture, I will remember your sweet mother. May she rest in Peace.
Leslie and I dated for a while when she lived in Iowa. Unlike most of my relationships, we remained friends for the rest of her life. I got to spend the day with her when I was in Chicago last year for my mother’s 90th birthday celebration. So glad I did, not knowing it would be the last time I would see her. Although we didn’t see each other that much, I will miss her greatly. May she rest in peace.
This is a beautiful obituary. I did not have the honor of personally meeting Leslie but have been encouraged by the wonderful stories of kindness that my husband Peter and mother-in-law Frieda have shared. Leslie would call Frieda every year on her birthday, which Frieda loved. And after Frieda passed away, she would call Peter on his mothers birthday. Her son Jeffrey is an extraordinarily kind person, so he must reflect Leslie’s loving kindness. We pray comfort for her family at this time .
This is a beautiful obituary. I did not have the honor of personally meeting Leslie but have been encouraged by the wonderful stories of kindness that my husband Peter and mother-in-law Frieda have shared. Leslie would call Frieda every year on her birthday, which Frieda loved. And after Frieda passed away, she would call Peter on his mothers birthday. Her son Jeffrey is an extraordinarily kind person, so he must reflect Leslie’s loving kindness. We pray comfort for her family at this time .
Leslie was a bright light and absolute joy in our office. She genuinely cared about each student and every colleague. In the time I worked with her, she sought out ways to get to know me personally, sharing anecdotes about her late husband and children often. She was instantly missed upon her retirement and we were always happy to see and hear how much she was enjoying the extra time to spend with friends and family, and I am very sorry to hear of her passing. Sending condolences to her family during this time.
I am broken hearted to lose a favorite, vivacious, brilliant, fun loving and compassionate cousin and friend. She lived the life many people just dream of. My heart and house are filled with memories and mementos of dear Leslie. Til we meet again dear Leslie🥰🥰🙏🏽🙏🏽
Though we have only known Leslie for less than a year, we will miss her dearly. We’ll never forget the fun we had with the games she introduced us to.
Gone, but never far from our hearts.
Deepest sympathy for your loss.
Leslie-Gay, I miss, and I’m sure we all miss the sound of your laughter. This, and so much more about you will live in our memories.
My husband and I were truly saddened to hear the news of Leslie’s passing. Leslie and I worked together @ IIT. We shared a lot of laughs and life experiences. Through our work together she came to know my husband and they became fond of each other. She loved her family so as she was so selfless & caring. Rest in peace Leslie
Words cannot express How devastated we are at having lost our big sister at such a young age, and in such a tragic way. She was so thoughtful and considerate. she taught us all how to be better siblings. She could always be counted on to write a letter or a note or a postcard from wherever she was. She encouraged all of our reading by buying us books for our birthdays and Christmas and she did it for generations. she sent books to us, our children and our brothers grandchildren. We are going to miss our daily. sibling text message with pictures of the sunrise and Kali. Rest in peace, Leslie. you’ll always be in our hearts.
With lots of love from George, Gabrielle, Angelique and all of our children and grandchildren whom you touched….🥰🥰🥰💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜
My love 💓 and congratulations for a job well done in life and to rest well with the Howard ancestry
I love you and miss you so much
Leslie, I think of you when I play the Wordle, experience some sort of self-doubt, or think about the various causes close to your heart. You leave behind the greatest legacy – of warmth, friendship, mentorship, and gentle guidance to be our best selves. May your students never forget your inspiration to leave the world a better place, just like you did.
It has been just over a year since our Lord called you home, we miss your smiling face at Seven Bridges and we miss the daily convos in the lobby and hallways. You are forever in our thoughts.