Sanbornton – Leola Blackwood Lightowler, age 100, of Walnut Creek, CA, and formerly of Sanbornton, NH, passed away on June 8, 2015 at her daughter’s home in California.
Leola was born on May 18, 1915 in the village of Mt. Pleasant, NJ, the daughter of the late Orville and Ella (Stout) Halsey. Leola attended grade school in a one room schoolhouse a few doors from her home, and attended high school in Frenchtown, NJ. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Maryville College in Tennessee in 1936. Leola went on to take a fifth year of study at Princeton Theological Seminary, earning a second Bachelor's Degree and certificate in Christian Education. She worked at a large Presbyterian Church in White Plains, NY as Director of Religious Education until her marriage to Melville Blackwood in 1941. In 1973, Leola earned her Master of Arts degree from Plymouth State College.
Leola was an active and well known member of the Sanbornton community for over 30 years. She taught in the Sanbornton Central School from 1968-1977, led the H.O.P. (Health for Older People) exercise program sponsored by the Franklin Regional Hospital and was active in the Sanbornton Historical Society where she chaired the committee to erect the Veteran's Memorial placed in front of the Sanbornton Town Library, dedicated on Veteran's Day 1999. Leola was also a member of the Sanbornton Fire Auxiliary Women, the Lakes Region Retired Teachers Association and the First Baptist Church of Sanbornton.
Leola is survived by her daughters Barbara Blake of Walnut Creek, CA, and Patricia Blackwood of New Hampton, three grand-daughters, six great-grandchildren and many nieces and nephews. She is pre-deceased by her son William Blackwood, who died in 2013, her first husband Melville J. Blackwood who died in 1987, her second husband Joseph Halsey Lightowler whom she married in 1991, and a sister Marjorie Hughes.
All who remember Leola are welcome to attend a memorial service that will take place on Saturday, September 12, 2015 at 2:30 PM at the First Baptist Church of Sanbornton, 17 Church Lane. Pastor Scott Manning will be officiating.
In lieu of flowers, it is suggested that those who wish consider a donation to the Sanbornton Historical Society, PO Box 204, 520 Sanbornton Square, Rte 132, Sanbornton, NH 03269.
Wilkinson-Beane-Simoneau-Paquette Funeral Home & Cremation Services, 164 Pleasant Street, Laconia, N.H. is assisting the family with the arrangements. For more information and to view an online memorial go to www.wilkinsonbeane.com.