Obituary of Jack Leshner
On the morning of Tuesday, August 27, 2019 Jack Leshner, son of Ben Leshner and Bella Wolfsen, brother of Mischa Leshner, peacefully passed away at St. Francis Hospital in Roslyn, New York after a long battle with lung cancer.
Jack was born in the Bronx on March 31, 1928 and raised in Monticello, NY where his family owned a summer resort business, the Harmony Country Club. Jack attended grade school in Kiamesha in a one-room schoolhouse and attended Monticello Junior High and High School where he graduated in 1944. He received a Bachelor’s degree in 1948 and a Masters degree in History and Political Science from NYU in 1950. Jack served in the Korean War from 1951-52 in the Second Infantry Division where he earned a Combat Infantry Badge, two bronze Battle Stars, and Korean and UN Service Stars.
In 1955 he married the beautiful Florence Miller. He was widowed in 1990 and is survived by three daughters- Amy Thomas (Jon Thomas), Beth Garner (David Garner), Lori Leshner (John Roque)- and three grandchildren: Christopher Thomas, Emily and Sarah Garner, as well as many beloved nieces and nephews.
Jack taught Social Studies and Political Science at Fallsburg High School from 1952 to 1986. He was chairman of the department and Summer School principal until 1986.
Upon retiring from Fallsburg CSD, he became an adjunct professor of political science at Sullivan Community College from 1986 until 2011.
Jack served on the Monticello School Board for twenty-one years. He was the president of the Sullivan County Schoolmasters, the Fallsburg Teachers Association, Sullivan County School Boards Association, Fallsburg B’nai Brith (Sydney Goldstein Lodge), Monticello Kiwanis Club, and the Sullivan County Dramatic Workshop. He was also Vice President and on the Board of Directors at Temple Sholom.
His many awards include Mid Hudson School Study Council, Sullivan County Teacher of the Year (1982), Sullivan County School Board Member of the Year (2001), B’nai Brith Man of the Year (1984), and the Sullivan County Legislature Best Friend of Education Award (2002). In addition, Jack was the first inductee into the Fallsburg School District Hall of Fame in 2013.
A funeral service will be held on Thursday, August 29, 2019 at 1:00pm at the Joseph N. Garlick Funeral Home, 388 Broadway, Monticello, NY 12701. Burial with full military honors will immediately follow in the Temple Sholom Cemetery, South Woods Road in Monticello.
Funeral arrangements are entrusted to the Joseph N. Garlick Funeral Home - Monticello; “Honorably Serving the Tri-County Jewish Community for 70 Years” 845-794-7474 or www.josephngarlickfuneralhome.com.
