Leona Gertrude Dowling was born, along with her identical twin sister Mildred, in Washington, DC to Julia Mitchell Dowling and Edwin Joseph Dowling, Sr. Her parents were not expecting twins and had chosen only one girl's name, Mildred. The young doctor who delivered the twins asked that the "second" girl be named for him. His name was Leonard so the baby girl was named Leona. The twins had a happy childhood and were inseparable until Mildred died giving birth to her son.
Leona was first married to Richard Duvall and at the age of 21 gave birth to her daughter Mildred Leona. She later married John Stanford Stultz and had a second daughter, Janice Elaine, at the age of 42.
Although she attended Wilson Normal School because her father wanted her to become a teacher, Leona began a career as an employee of the U.S. Postal Service, where her father was an electrical engineer. Admired for her organizational skills, she rose through the ranks to become the Manager of the Inquiry Section of the Washington, DC Post Office. The building in which she worked is now the National Postal Museum.
After her retirement, she became an active volunteer in Our Saviour Episcopal Church, serving as the parish treasurer and working on the altar guild. In her later years she became a champion for senior citizens' causes and oversaw recreational activities in her apartment building for seniors.
She died in her sleep of a cerebral hemorrhage, having had a cheerful conversation with her daughter Janice that evening and planning to meet her grandson Warren Gray for breakfast the next morning. Her final act of caring was to donate her eyes to the Lions Club for their work with the visually impaired. The day of her funeral she had been scheduled to appear on a local television talk show in a panel discussion of the benefits of exercise for seniors. Many friends attended her funeral and her coffin was covered with a blanket of daisies, her favorite flower, which were a perfect symbol of her simple beauty and sunny disposition.
Leona was first married to Richard Duvall and at the age of 21 gave birth to her daughter Mildred Leona. She later married John Stanford Stultz and had a second daughter, Janice Elaine, at the age of 42.
Although she attended Wilson Normal School because her father wanted her to become a teacher, Leona began a career as an employee of the U.S. Postal Service, where her father was an electrical engineer. Admired for her organizational skills, she rose through the ranks to become the Manager of the Inquiry Section of the Washington, DC Post Office. The building in which she worked is now the National Postal Museum.
After her retirement, she became an active volunteer in Our Saviour Episcopal Church, serving as the parish treasurer and working on the altar guild. In her later years she became a champion for senior citizens' causes and oversaw recreational activities in her apartment building for seniors.
She died in her sleep of a cerebral hemorrhage, having had a cheerful conversation with her daughter Janice that evening and planning to meet her grandson Warren Gray for breakfast the next morning. Her final act of caring was to donate her eyes to the Lions Club for their work with the visually impaired. The day of her funeral she had been scheduled to appear on a local television talk show in a panel discussion of the benefits of exercise for seniors. Many friends attended her funeral and her coffin was covered with a blanket of daisies, her favorite flower, which were a perfect symbol of her simple beauty and sunny disposition.
Leona Gertrude Dowling was born, along with her identical twin sister Mildred, in Washington, DC to Julia Mitchell Dowling and Edwin Joseph Dowling, Sr. Her parents were not expecting twins and had chosen only one girl's name, Mildred. The young doctor who delivered the twins asked that the "second" girl be named for him. His name was Leonard so the baby girl was named Leona. The twins had a happy childhood and were inseparable until Mildred died giving birth to her son.
Leona was first married to Richard Duvall and at the age of 21 gave birth to her daughter Mildred Leona. She later married John Stanford Stultz and had a second daughter, Janice Elaine, at the age of 42.
Although she attended Wilson Normal School because her father wanted her to become a teacher, Leona began a career as an employee of the U.S. Postal Service, where her father was an electrical engineer. Admired for her organizational skills, she rose through the ranks to become the Manager of the Inquiry Section of the Washington, DC Post Office. The building in which she worked is now the National Postal Museum.
After her retirement, she became an active volunteer in Our Saviour Episcopal Church, serving as the parish treasurer and working on the altar guild. In her later years she became a champion for senior citizens' causes and oversaw recreational activities in her apartment building for seniors.
She died in her sleep of a cerebral hemorrhage, having had a cheerful conversation with her daughter Janice that evening and planning to meet her grandson Warren Gray for breakfast the next morning. Her final act of caring was to donate her eyes to the Lions Club for their work with the visually impaired. The day of her funeral she had been scheduled to appear on a local television talk show in a panel discussion of the benefits of exercise for seniors. Many friends attended her funeral and her coffin was covered with a blanket of daisies, her favorite flower, which were a perfect symbol of her simple beauty and sunny disposition.
Leona was first married to Richard Duvall and at the age of 21 gave birth to her daughter Mildred Leona. She later married John Stanford Stultz and had a second daughter, Janice Elaine, at the age of 42.
Although she attended Wilson Normal School because her father wanted her to become a teacher, Leona began a career as an employee of the U.S. Postal Service, where her father was an electrical engineer. Admired for her organizational skills, she rose through the ranks to become the Manager of the Inquiry Section of the Washington, DC Post Office. The building in which she worked is now the National Postal Museum.
After her retirement, she became an active volunteer in Our Saviour Episcopal Church, serving as the parish treasurer and working on the altar guild. In her later years she became a champion for senior citizens' causes and oversaw recreational activities in her apartment building for seniors.
She died in her sleep of a cerebral hemorrhage, having had a cheerful conversation with her daughter Janice that evening and planning to meet her grandson Warren Gray for breakfast the next morning. Her final act of caring was to donate her eyes to the Lions Club for their work with the visually impaired. The day of her funeral she had been scheduled to appear on a local television talk show in a panel discussion of the benefits of exercise for seniors. Many friends attended her funeral and her coffin was covered with a blanket of daisies, her favorite flower, which were a perfect symbol of her simple beauty and sunny disposition.
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