Obituary of Lenore Evelyn Clesceri

Lenore Evelyn Stanke Clesceri

August 9, 1935 - June 19, 2022

BOLTON LANDING: Lenore Evelyn Stanke Clesceri, age 86, daughter of the late Elinor and Walter Stanke and “Sis” to her older brother Walter, was born in Chicago in 1935.  Lenore won a basketball scholarship which led her to St. Patrick Academy in Des Plaines, IL where she and Nick Clesceri found each other at a sophomore dance and never looked back.  She won a scholarship to Loyola University, where she graduated in 1957, married Nick, then they moved to Milwaukee, WI to study at Marquette University. She received a fellowship from the University of Wisconsin at Madison, where she received her Ph.D. in Biochemistry.  She and Nick earned fellowships from the U.S. Public Health Service to study at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology.  They lived and worked in Zurich for two years, then returned to the States in 1965, where she began 30 years of research and teaching environmental biochemistry at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, NY.  

The family moved to Bolton Landing in 1973, where they ran a small resort called Horicon Heights and Lenore enjoyed gardening, baking, sewing and playing her piano.  Lenore served on the school board, and in faith formation and eucharistic ministry at Blessed Sacrament Church.  During these years, they raised five children together, and Lenore would say of her many accomplishments, she was most proud of her family.  Upon retirement from RPI, she ran “Gramma’s School” once a week which provided very special memories for her preschool grandchildren. She and Nick moved to Washington D.C. to work at the National Science Foundation.  They lived on their boat “Lady Lenore '' in a marina on the Potomac River, near enough to the Pentagon to witness the unfolding crisis on 9/11.  They returned to upstate New York in 2012 and continued to live joyfully in Bolton, interacting with family and friends and living her life to the fullest.  Lenore was diagnosed with cancer in spring, 2022 then went to Heaven.

Lenore was preceded in death by her parents, her brother Walter, and baby Marisa.  Left behind to cherish the memories are her husband Nick of 64 years; children Pamela (David), Kristine (Frank), Craig (Amy), Erika (Jonathan), Jeffrey (Lori); grandchildren Daniel, Andrew, Anna, Makenzie, Olivia, Caroline, Nicholas, Emmett, Gianna, Marissa (Nathan); many beloved nieces and nephews and friends.

Our family requests that in lieu of flowers, donations to C.R.Wood Cancer Center at Glens Falls Hospital or Peter Young Housing, Industries and Treatment or any charity of your choice, would be very much appreciated.

Friends may call on Lenore’s family from 4pm -6pm, Sunday, June 26, 2022 at Alexander Funeral Home, 3809 Main St, Warrensburg, NY.  There will be a Mass of Christian Burial 11 AM, Monday, June 27 at Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church, 7 Goodman Ave., Bolton Landing, NY. Burial will follow in Bolton Rural Cemetery, Bolton Landing, NY.

Please visit www.alexanderfh.net for online guest book, condolences, and directions.