Rosa V. Leon

Rosa is survived by her two sons Rene Leon and David G. Leon and preceded in death by her husband of 56 years, Diego Leon, who passed in 2004 and her Daughter Diana R. Weston, who passed in 2007. She was the loving grandmother of five grandchildren, Roseann Hahn, David J. Leon, Tara Castro, Stephanie Shone, and Mikela Weston. Rosa has five great grandchildren and one great, great, granddaughter. She is survived by her brothers Oscar Valdes and Robert Pages, and is preceded in death by her sister Evelyn Salabarria, who passed in 2015. Rose is also survived by her close, dear friend Jerry DuRocher.

Rosa Valdes Leon was born in the Bronx on St. Nicholas Ave. and spent her childhood days growing up on St. Ann's Avenue. She loved everything about New York City but most of all, the monuments, like the Statue of Liberty, the Empire State Building, Ellis Island, and the old Yankee Stadium, home of her beloved New York Yankees. The family shared a tradition of staying on the same street or neighborhoods, whether they lived on St. Ann's in the Bronx, on 14th St. in Ybor City, on Varela St. in Key West, on St. John St. or Lambright St., in West Tampa, or nearby neighborhoods in Lutz.

She enjoyed music, dancing, and singing and could play the organ and the keyboard. Her favorites were old Cuban classics for dancing, classic American rock for singing solo, and Country music for singing songs with friends or family.

She loved traveling and visiting amusement parks, from nearby Bush Gardens and Frontier Park to different Six Flags throughout the Southeast. She loved celebrating holidays, particularly Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve parties at either her Sister Evelyn's house or one of the Leon's, or sometimes more than one, and Thanksgiving dinners at either Abuela Isabel's, Abuela Lutguarda's or one of her home cooked fiesta's at her place.