Remembering Judith Ann Lambden Leasher, beloved wife of Olin
The Bulletin editors join all Sunrise Rotarians in remembering the beautiful presence Judy Leasher brought to Sunrise events and activities. We offer our most sincere sympathies to Olin and all who morn her untimely passing.
Judith Ann Lambden Leasher left us for her final journey on April 10, 2021. Her departure was peaceful and attended by her family together with her devoted husband of 55 years, Olin Leasher.
Judy grew up in Hayward, California, and in her youth dreamed of traveling the world. After leaving college, she traveled to Mexico where she studied Spanish while living with family friends. She loved Mexican art and danced in the Ballet Folklorico in Mexico City.
From there she went to Washington DC to be trained to work in overseas embassies for the US State Department. She hoped to find employment that would take her around the world. In Alameda she met the great love of her life at a US Navy officer’s club party. Olin was a Michigan farm boy working on a project for the Navy. He remembers that he could not believe his good fortune in meeting such a beautiful and accomplished woman. And Judy was smitten.
They soon discussed marriage, but at first Judy worried that marriage might limit her travel plans. Her hesitation was quickly resolved when Olin proposed a pact that they organize their married life around their mutual desire to see as much of the world as possible. They shared a hunger to see far places and meet people.
They were married in April 1966 and Judy worked in the financial district in San Francisco while Olin finished school. When Olin finished his studies, they had enough money saved to travel and arranged to take delivery of a car in Europe. They spent six months driving thousands of kilometers around Europe while accumulating friends. All the while Judy worked on her French.
Returning to the Bay Area, Olin worked in the aerospace industry. They acquired a big fixer-upper house in San Carlos, which they used to entertain guests they had met during their travels. Everyone in the family knew they were unlikely to stay put if an opportunity to travel beckoned.
When Olin was offered an opportunity to travel to Japan to assist with the testing and launch of a Japanese satellite, they quickly accepted. Judy began studying Japanese even before they left the United States and was soon fluent in the language.
Even today foreigners or "gaijin" are relatively uncommon in many parts of Japan. And a beautiful blonde American who is fluent in Japanese is even more rarely seen. Judy's brother James recalls that she was frequently mistaken for a movie star. She was often asked to pose for photographs with strangers she met during her travels in Japan.
Influential Japanese friends were drawn to Judy and introduced her to famous kabuki actors, sumo champions, and artisans. Her friendships gained her entrance to places, such as the Imperial gardens, ordinarily closed even to the Japanese public.
When it came time to launch Olin's satellite, they moved to the remote island of Tanegashima at the furthest southern tip of the Japanese Islands. No one could remember whether an American woman had ever lived on Tanegashima. The sight of Judy riding her motorbike around the island stopped traffic. She astonished those she met with her ability to speak the language and with her knowledge of Japanese etiquette. She spread goodwill wherever she went.
Judy and Olin next traveled to Bangalore, which is today a sophisticated technical hub in Southern India. In those days, however, the available accommodations were primitive. Judy met those challenges with alacrity and applied her energy to advocate for women's rights.
The couple next moved to the city of Cannes in southern France where the French aerospace industry is located. The Cote d'Azur was idyllic and their time in France was so enjoyable that they considered retiring there. Ultimately, they returned to California to settle in Santa Rosa to enjoy the California wine country's similarity to the parts of France they loved.
Although Judy's health began to fail she redoubled her activities, and was especially vigorous in finding any opportunity to dance. She continued her work to support women's rights organizations. She and Olin were active in the International Rotary Club. She became a Zumba zealot.
When illness took her voice, Judy taught herself American Sign Language, which became her final language. She was fluent enough to tell jokes and make puns in sign language. When it came time for her final departure, she said goodbye in sign language. She went gently to sleep, traveling once again to a new place, and quietly reminding us of the beauty of the wide world and all its people.
