Leeza Kronick, 66, of Leesburg, Virginia, passed away on July 28 from ovarian cancer, after a 2-year struggle that she carried out with unfailing courage, grace and kindness.
Leeza is survived by her parents, Milt and Chari Kronick of Uniontown, PA her sweetheart, Andrew Schuler her loving sisters, Jan Danko (and Alan) of Pittsburgh, PA and Myndi Kronick (and Fred Firestone) of Ashburn, VA adoring nieces and nephew Jacy Danko Hines (and Jake) of New York City, Maura Danko (and Tom Barry) in Columbus, Ohio, Carly Firestone in Washington, DC, Seth Firestone in Falls Church, VA. and her dear niece dog, Sambooka.
Leeza grew up in Uniontown, PA, then later lived in Boulder, Halifax, Boston, Burlington, and Atlanta before setting roots in Northern Virginia, where she and her partner Andrew were practically inseparable. In the 1970s, after a brief time in Ohio attending the University of Ohio, Leeza moved to Colorado. She took dance classes at Naropa Institute in Boulder, CO, and so was introduced to the Buddhist and Shambhala teachings of Chögyam Trungpa, Rinpoche. She was described by her instructor as having ‘a natural grace, rhythm, and movement awareness, along with a sharp mind, kindness, curiosity, and warmth’. Leeza accompanied her dance instructor, as an adjunctive teacher, in bringing arts to underserved populations such as prisoners, developmentally disabled, and people with behavioral health disorders in the Boulder area. She then attended Regis University in Denver to study movement therapy. Leeza was interested in holistic approaches to healing and wellness. She pursued studies in nursing while living in Nova Scotia. After moving to Boston, Leeza worked as an art/movement therapist in a rehabilitation center and also assisted in a hospice center. She moved to Burlington, VT in the early 1990s, where she worked at the Vermont Teddy Bear Factory. During that time, she sent each of her newborn nieces and nephew their own special teddy bear.
While in Burlington, Leeza had her first bout of ovarian cancer. After surgery, she moved to Atlanta. She had a recurrence in 1996 and endured chemotherapy with a quiet strength. After beating cancer in Atlanta, Leeza moved to Northern Virginia to be closer to family where she worked as a consultant in the Telecom industry. Later, she was an election worker, campaign worker, and voter registration volunteer. Most recently, Leeza worked for Makpar, Loudoun Cares, and the Loudoun Literary Council. Leeza loved nature, hiking, shopping and spending time with her family. She loved people and liked to strike up conversations with strangers. Leeza was a very special friend, sister, aunt, cousin and daughter. She did not often criticize or judge others. If she did, it was to stop others from doing so—she kept a very pure view of everyone. She was a good listener and was articulate and insightful regarding human nature and the Shambhala and Buddhist teachings. A memorial service will be held at a future date. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations to Shambhala, at shambhala.org or the National Ovarian Cancer Coalition, at ovarian.org