Nov. 1,1921-July 1. 2012
Audrey, the greatest mother in the whole world (in our humble opinion)
passed away on Sunday July 1st at Lawrence Hospital in Bronxville,NY, with
her loving daughter, Wendy close at hand, ready with a Haagen Daz
chocolate milk shake should she be allowed fluids again.
Unfortunately, she didn't get her last taste -- but she had a
wonderful taste of life in her 90 and a half years, mostly lived in
Fleetwood, NY. She loved Walter's Hot dogs and sweet potato fries, Angelina's eggplant parmigiana, decorative pins, broadway shows, music (Michael Feinstein, songs by
Marilyn/Alan Bergman), Gunhill Road (her son's group), reading (PD
James, Ruth Rendell, Barbara Pym) and even (gulp!) NCIS! She loved to
travel with the Elder Hostel groups -- Israel, New Mexico, Europe --
and even sailed to England on the QE2 with two of her children -- and
met PD James on board the boat!) But most of all, Audrey loved her
three children -- and grandchild - and they loved her.
Audrey was born in NYC to Minnie and Irving Sarnoff. Her father owned
Sarnoff's Stationery Store in Pleasantville,NY, where Audrey went to high
school, with younger sister Sondra and brother Nelson. There she met
her first husband, Ben Leopold, and had three children -- Glenn, Wendy
and Gary. After graduating from Fordham College, Audrey moved to
Quincy, MA. where Ben had a job in the shoe business, She was a past
President of the Quincy Chapter of Hadassah and has plenty of trees in
Israel to show for it. After Quincy, there was a brief move to
Atlanta,GA, then back to Pleasantville when she was divorced. Working as
a single Mom, she worked at the Reader's Digest while raising her
three kids (and we weren't easy!) Mother called Glenn a nudnick and a
crazy bozo -- which he considers terms of endearment, because he knew
she was his biggest fan. And vice versa.
Audrey married Marty Feiner and moved to Mt. Vernon,NY, and decided to
get her teaching degree. She went on to teach special needs students
in the South Bronx Public Schools for 25 years and would often run into a-now-grown-up-kid who
remembered her fondly. They were lucky to have her as a teacher and a role model. So was her grandson,
Jared Drace, Wendy's boy. He called her Badonda because he couldn't
say Grandmother when he was a baby -- and the name stuck. Audrey even
had Badonda license plates on her rollator! Collector's items now.
Jared even accompanied Badonda to visit Glenn in California two years
ago.
Though Audrey's body grew frail, she never lost her sense of humor.
Recently, she was told her son Gary was competing for some business.
She said 'He'd better get the business to keep this bag of bones
going." She was one of a kind. She always put her kids first. She was
our Mom and we miss her terribly, but are so thankful for all the time
we got to spend with her.
Survivors include her son Glenn Leopold and daughter-in-law Alison Leopold of Santa Barbara, CA., son
Gary Leopold and girlfriend Kim Colombi of Boston, MA., daughter Wendy Leopold of Fleetwood, NY. and her boyfriend John Isaia of New Rochelle NY, who was always there for Audrey,
Michael the turtle of Fleetwood, NY, and sister Samantha (Sondra)
Lipson of Palm Beach, FLA.
In lieu of flowers, please go to hadassah.org click 'donate' and plant
a tree in Israel in Audrey's honor.
Funeral Service Thursday, July 5 12:00 pm at Riverside Memorial Chapel 21 W. Broad St. Mt. Vernon, NY.
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