Jeanne Leachman, 92, of Clarkston, passed away Monday, Jan. 20, 2025, in Clarkston. She was born in Tacoma on March 22, 1932 to William and Bessie Harris. She was the fourth of five children, having older sisters Donna and Judy and one older brother, Bill. Her family moved to Nez Perce County, Idaho, where a younger sister, Ruth, was born when Jeanne was two. All five siblings lived to old age and Jeanne was the last surviving sibling.
Jeanne’s father had been seriously wounded as an American soldier in World War I and was in poor health for some time before his death at age 47, not quite five months after Jeanne’s eighth birthday. This left Jeanne and her mother and siblings to look out for and support each other and developed strength, independence, and resilience in each of them.
Despite the hardships of her childhood, Jeanne graduated from high school in Lewiston, and in 1950 she met World War II – European theater Army veteran Edward “Ed” Leachman at a local dance. They married on Feb. 9, 1951, and bought and settled into a home where they raised their four children Terry (Alan) Clark, Jack (Barbara) Leachman, Laurie Leachman (Charlie MacDonald), and Tom (Ronna) Leachman. She and Ed added onto that home multiple times as their family grew, and she lived in it for over 70 years. Following from the challenges of her own childhood, Jeanne put a high value on creating a stable life and home for her family. She was a tough, frugal and efficient no-nonsense mother, and along with her husband ensured that their children had all that they needed. All of her children went on to successful careers and families of their own, and brought her seven grandchildren. At the time of her death she had nine great-grandchildren. She lived with her husband Ed for 61 years until his death in 2012.
Until very late in life, Jeanne was almost entirely self-sufficient. She was an accomplished seamstress routinely making and mending clothes for her children as they grew and making countless flannel work shirts for her husband over their 61 years together. She was an avid landscaper and skilled gardener at her home, performed house maintenance and painting inside and out, washed and waxed the family vehicles, made jam from her own raspberries and canned fruits every year, produced a steady stream of pies and cookies for her family even after they were grown, and kept her family in knitted dishrags and potholders. Her innate artistic talents were reflected in her fun pastimes of painting figurines and coloring pictures and calendars. And she spent innumerable hours tending to her yard, flowers and rose gardens.
She is survived by all of her children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, nieces and a nephew, all of whom live in Lewiston or the surrounding area, and by her final well-loved feline companion, Allie Katt.
A celebration of life and reception is scheduled for Jeanne at 11 a.m. Wednesday, Jan. 29, at Vassar-Rawls Funeral Home, 920 21st Ave., Lewiston.
