Obituary: Patricia Neal Leinster, 87, previously of Branford

Obituary courtesy of W. S. Clancy Memorial Funeral Home:

Patricia Neal Leinster, daughter of the late Carroll and Dorothy Neal of Branford, Connecticut (and later Walpole, NH) passed away on November 9, 2023. Born in Guilford, Connecticut, Pat grew up in Branford. She shared many happy memories of being surrounded by her beloved extended family on Goodsell Point Road, time spent with her Harlow and Neal grandparents and loving aunts and uncles, hours spent at the Branford Library and on the Branford River, and fun times in high school, where she met her husband David.

Pat attended Virginia Intermont College in Bristol, Virginia and later received her bachelors and masters degrees from Keene State College. She became a teacher and taught high school English for many years. In her retirement she enjoyed working on research projects including family and local history.

In 1956, she married David Leinster, also of Branford. They celebrated 60 years of marriage and created a home in Westmoreland, New Hampshire where they lived for close to 50 years; children and grandchildren remember many a cozy day spent in Westmoreland enjoying a family dinner and a fire in the fireplace. Pat organized yearly family vacations on Cape Cod, a tradition that has carried through the generations and reflects what a special place the Cape has been to our family.
Pat is predeceased by her husband David and leaves three daughters, Anne Windham and her husband Ryder of Providence, Rhode Island and their two daughters Dorothy Margit and Violet Ruth; Chaipel Leinster and her husband Mitchell Gowans, also of Providence; and Katherine Leinster-O’Connor and her husband Robert O’Connor and their two children Claire Katherine and William Denis of Keene, New Hampshire.

A private service and burial will be held in Branford, Connecticut.

For those who wish, contributions may be made to the Westmoreland Town Library, Westmoreland, NH where Patricia worked while raising her family.