Obituary of Lenore "Leigh Ann" Hanson

Lenore "Leigh" Hanson, beloved daughter of the late Dorothy Phillips Pakes and darling granddaughter of the late Ethel (Case) & Herman Phillipstein, was born October 28, 1941 in Manhattan. The Phillipstein family owned a coffee shop in Times Square. She was raised by her grandparents and her aunt, Eleanor Phillips, on Coney Island Avenue in Brooklyn. Lenore was predeceased by her two loving siblings, Joan Hanson-Giffone and Edward Heckers.

She met her husband, the late Frederick Hansen, after he crashed her sweet 16 party, and she told him to go away. He came back, and they married three years later in 1960, both proud alums of Van Buren High School in Queens Village. Their marriage was blessed with three children, Frederick Jr. (Lynn Aasheim), Daniel John (Pamela Griffin), and Catherine Mary Ingraham (Peter).

Leigh was the beloved Nana to five grandchildren including Daniel John, Eric Quentin, Elizabeth Catherine, Christian August, and Alexander Kingsbury. One of the grandchildrens' fondest memories of Nana was when she taught them to play and win at poker. She also taught them to run really fast when she got a new electric scooter, drove out of control, and ran over everyone at Disney World. Leigh adored all of her grandchildren -- it was always an adventure with Nana.

Her first sales job in the 1970s with Tom Laffey, who said Leigh could sell ice to Eskimos. She then worked for 10 years for Unilever USA, where she won many sales awards. Leigh started and was then the owner of Leigh Ann Sales, Inc., a wholesale baker's representative. Her clients through the years included major grocery stores and Costco. Many years ago, fresh baked cookies and the giant buttery croissant was first introduced to Costco by Leigh Ann Sales.

Leigh retired in 2012 and lived in Leisure Village where she enjoyed reading, walking her two small dogs (even though she was just allowed to have one dog), and winning at mahjong and canasta.

Leigh would proudly say that she graduated from the School of Hard Knocks in Brooklyn. She celebrated 36 years of sobriety, sponsoring half of Long Island. Leigh loved to volunteer at soup kitchens, go out to help the homeless get into shelters, took needy strangers to get help and to church, and always helped people at their lowest. She lived to help the most desperate and needy, never forgetting her own struggles. She leaves behind a legacy of caring for those who struggled and would proudly say to the struggling that there was always a seat next to her waiting for them.

Leigh loved children, was a cub scout den leader, and taught Sunday school no matter where she lived. She will be missed by everyone who knew her.

Reposing Nolan Funeral Home, 5 Laurel Avenue, Northport, Saturday 2-5 PM. Service Sunday 1:15 PM at the Funeral Home. Interment to follow at Northport Rural Cemetery. In lieu of flowers donations to North Shore Holiday House, in Leigh Ann's memory would be appreciated.