Kathleen Villeneuve

Kathleen “Kathy” Villeneuve whose love brightened the lives of everyone around her, passed on the morning of March 25, 2023 under the compassionate support of AccentCare Hospice Center in Largo, FL. She did her very best to live every day to its fullest while battling cancer. She was 70 years old when she passed away. Kathy is survived by her husband Bruce Villeneuve, daughter Karen Swim and son Steven Spitzer.

Kathy was born on November 15, 1952 at Rome Memorial Hospital Hospital in Rome, NY to T. Richard “Dick” Leidig (deceased) and Lucille “Luci” Leidig. Kathy was the first of three children born to Dick and Luci, which include brothers Stephen Leidig (deceased) and Richard “Rick” Leidig.

Kathleen Villeneuve was a model student and graduated from Rome Free Academy in 1970. She loved spending summers at the family's camp at Woodhull Lake in the Adirondack Mountains. There she fostered her love for swimming, canoeing, sailing, hiking and nature with her Aunt Mary Hanrahan (deceased) Uncle John Hanrahan (deceased) their son and daughters John Hanrahan, Mary-Pat Francisco, and Maureen Hatfield.

She attended Potsdam college and achieved her bachelor’s degree in French and planned on becoming a French teacher.

She took a school trip to Europe and reinforced her love for France and her faith in God when she visited Mont-Saint-Michels church in France. At Potsdam College she met her first husband Gary Douglas Spitzer and moved to Liverpool, NY where she gave birth to their two children Karen and Steven. After realizing that teaching French was not a career she wished to pursue, she spent a short time as a bank teller and soon after was an office manager for many years at Bauer Plumbing in Syracuse, NY.

She renewed her faith in the Roman Catholic Church in 1984, where she would devote more and more of her time to enriching the community church she ultimately decided to attend, Christ the King Church in Liverpool, NY. She also renewed her passion for singing and joined the choir where she stood out as an alto singer.

She found a career she was passionate in pursuing as a school librarian specializing in electronic media. She was given a “full-ride” scholarship and graduated with a perfect 4.0 grade average with her four close friends. They were known to each other as “3 Kathy’s and a Jan”. While attending Graduate school and afterwards she was a coauthor and the copywriter for her professor Micheal Eisenburg on multiple editions of a book about Information Literacy.

While being busy with writing, teaching, and being a leader in her church community she was a kind, nurturing mother who passed on her knowledge of the cutting edge advancements in Apple home computing, her dear love for her pets, nature walks, biking riding, skiing, canoeing, and living an all around active lifestyle. She always had a smile on her face and a loving embrace to share with her family.

After her children left for college she found her second husband Bruce William Villeneuve, after many adventures and vacations they purchased an RV so they could spend even more time traveling and enjoying family. Bruce and Kathy got married on May 2018 in the beautiful backyard of their home on Mistral Circle in Liverpool, NY.

Shortly after, in September 2019 Bruce and Kathy moved to Largo, FL to care for her parents T Richard Leidig and Lucille Leidig who lived in Seminole FL. Both Kathy and Bruce worked for and were dedicated members of the church that they loved, St. Jerome Catholic Church in Largo, FL. They bought a home around the corner from the church where she spent the rest of her days taking care of her beloved dogs Isaiah, Sarah and Chipper. She attended to Dick and Luci with great compassion and care to help bring as much support to their lives as possible while Dick’s health was failing. He eventually passed on May 19, 2022.

In the final year of her life she remained true to herself and didn’t let her cancer diagnosis slow her down if she could help it. She took many trips to visit her family, sang in her choir, worked at her church, took walks on the beach with Bruce. She as well loved to take walks around the neighborhood with her dogs while always keeping her faith in Jesus Christ. She was surrounded by the ones she loved in the days before joining her ancestors and the Lord in heaven.

Kathy leaves behind the love of her life for 9 1/2 years Bruce William Villeneuve; his children Bruce (Lindsay) Villeneuve and their son Sammy; Allison (Will) Beyer and their daughter Carmen; her daughter Karen (Chris) Swim; and son Steve (Lea) Spitzer and their daughter Adalynn and son Jack, her mother Lucille Leidig, her brother Richard (Kathy) Leidig; their daughter Maria (Keith) Braun, their son Eddie and daughter Harper, and son William (Bianca) Leidig, daughters Ashlynne, Aubrey, Anna and Ally.

Preceding her in death and welcoming her to Heaven is her father T. Richard Leidig; her brother Stephen Leidig; her granddaughter Kyleigh Victoria Mellen, her nephew Tyler Leidig and her uncle Robert (Andree) Leidig.

Calling hours will be held at the Thomas P. Mooney Funeral Home, 11 Elm St. Nassau, NY 12123, from 11:00am to 12:00pm, on Saturday April 1st, with burial to follow the calling hours in St. Mary's Cemetery, Route 203 Nassau, NY. Following the burial, there will be a reception from 1:00pm to 3:00pm, at a location to be determined.