In Memoriam
Jo Ann Louise (Collins) Leuck
Jan 8, 1936 – Oct 3, 2011
A descendant of Pilgrim John Alden, she joined the Nebraska Society in 1996 and
was a member until 2008.
From the Omaha World-Herald:
Passed away at her home in Laguna Woods, CA, after a long illness. She will be remembered by all who knew her for her independent spirit and her commitment to the principles and causes that guided her life. She loved travel, reading, social events of all kinds, golf, and Nebraska football. Born in Omaha, she was the oldest child of Richard E. “Dick” and Mariann Collins. She was a graduate of Brownell-Talbot School and eventually pursued a career with the Nebraska Department of Labor, from which she retired in 1991. She married Thomas L. Leuck, and together they had 4 children, Colleen, Colette, Constance, and Thomas J. After Jo Ann and her husband were divorced, Omaha World-Herald editorial writer Larry Wilson became her life partner until his death in 1988. In 1995, at the age of 59, Jo Ann graduated from College of St. Mary’s Nursing School and moved with her daughter, Constance to Southern California to begin a new life. She launched a career in public health that included 6 years of service and care of the students of Our Lady of Talpa School in Los Angeles and another 10 years as Provider Relations/Nurse Specialist with Harbor Regional Center, Torrance, CA. Her love of travel took her all over the world, to Europe, South America and Asia. She experienced living in Guyana, did volunteer work in Mexico, and walked the Great Wall of China. She also loved cruising, and enjoyed several extended trips with her good friend and partner, Balduin “Bill” Welsch during the last years of her life. She counted among her many achievements swimming with dolphins off the coast of Florida, sipping Champagne on the pink beach of Bermuda, studying Spanish with her grandsons in Cuernavaca, Mexico, and touring Paris and London with her grandchildren, a trip that included a ride through the then newly built Chunnel. She provided care to the people of northern Mexico with the Flying Samaritans, cruised the Rhine River in Germany, and spent time in the Black Forest of Hungary. She traveled to Rome, Venice and Pompeii and watched a glacier calve on Glacier Bay in Alaska. She lived with the Sisters of Providence through Americorps as a new nurse caring for the sick in South Los Angeles and dined at the mansion of the U.S. ambassador in Barbados. Her life was rich and full. She will be missed. She is survived by her brother, Dr. Richard E. Collins, Littleton, CO; 4 children, Colleen Oglesby, Seattle, WA, Colette Green, Harlan, IA; Constance Leuck, Long Beach, CA, Thomas J. Leuck, Peculiar, MO; 8 grandchildren. Preceded in death by her parents, Richard E. and Mariann Collins; sister, Judith Matthews.
At JoAnn’s request, no service is scheduled.
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