Lesley Stanfield Becker

APRIL 8, 1971 – NOVEMBER 10, 2023

Lesley Stanfield Becker transitioned to Heaven on November 10, 2023 after a long, courageous fight. Lesley was born on April 8, 1971 in Landstuhl, Germany to Rowland DeForrest Stanfield, Jr. and Janice Holliman Stanfield. The family returned to her parents’ home in Tulsa, OK in 1974 and moved to Atlanta, GA in 1976. Lesley graduated from The Lovett School in Atlanta and the University of North Carolina (UNC-Chapel Hill) in 1994, where she majored in Biology and Photojournalism. She was a member of Chi Omega sorority.

From an early age, Lesley loved nature, animals and photography. As a child, she spent her summers at Camp Green Cove in North Carolina and took advantage of as many outdoor trips as she could in high school. She also loved going to the family farm on Grand Lake in Ketchum, Oklahoma. At the age of 14, Lesley was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer called neuroblastoma and underwent a bone marrow transplant at UCLA the following year. This was the first of many times Lesley would defy the odds and demonstrate an incredible positive attitude and strong will. Lesley was a devoted Tarheel and became the photographer for the university annual. She spent a summer in Wilmington and Bald Head Island, NC photographing wildlife for the National Audubon Society. Her lifelong dream was to take pictures for National Geographic, combining her love of photography and animals, and she was hired by National Geographic for a shoot while at UNC. After graduation, she attended a graduate program at Brooks Institute in Santa Barbara, CA where she honed her skills in underwater photography and fashion photography. Lesley’s adventurous spirit and love of travel culminated in a photojournalism expedition capturing life along the Niger River in Mali and again later in SE Asia. She had an eye for just the right light, color and the beauty of nature, capturing exceptional images throughout her life. She then moved to New York City to pursue her photography career, working as an assistant for world renowned fashion photographers Annie Leibowitz, Bruce Weber, Patrick Demarchelier, among others. As she was starting a career of her own, she was then diagnosed with heart failure, a result of the chemotherapy she had received as a child. She then decided to move back to Atlanta to be closer to friends and family.

Lesley met the love of her life, Matt Becker, at UNC and they married in 2001 in Atlanta. A year later, they moved to Wuerzberg, Germany for Matt’s job and lived there for four wonderful years. They traveled extensively throughout Europe appreciating art, music, culture and the outdoors, truly integrating into the European lifestyle. Upon returning to the US, they lived in Seattle, WA and later Madison, CT, on the beach where they had their only daughter, Brooke. After five years in CT, they settled in to Austin, TX to raise Brooke and fulfill Lesley’s dream of living on the water along Lake Austin. Lesley was a wonderful mother to Brooke. They loved singing, dancing, snuggling and marveling at nature wherever they went.

Lesley was a beautiful soul with an unparalleled fervor for living life to the fullest. Her parents instilled in her a love of travel. She truly saw the world during her lifetime, from the US National Parks to the Galapagos Islands, Peru, Africa, Europe and SE Asia. She exuded joy wherever she went with her radiant smile, infectious laugh, and sparkling eyes. She possessed remarkable fortitude and resilience that enabled her to defy the odds in just about any situation, including childhood cancer which resulted in health complications throughout her life. Her will to endure the toughest of circumstances was extraordinary and an inspiration to everyone around her, including the countless number of doctors and medical specialists that treated her throughout her life. Her brilliant light impacted so many across her 52 years in this world and left a lasting impression on all who encountered her. Her positive attitude, effervescence, determination, spunk and kind spirit are a life lesson for all.

She was predeceased by her parents, Rowland D. Stanfield, Jr. and Janice H. Stanfield; her grandparents Rowland and Patricia Stanfield of Tulsa and Joe and Jean Holliman of Tulsa; her uncle, Dr. John H. Holliman and uncle, Geoffrey Stanfield of Tulsa. She is survived by her husband Matthew Thomas Becker and daughter, Brooke Holliman Becker, of Austin, TX; aunt, Patricia S. Wofford (Larry), of Tulsa;; aunt, Joanna H. Potts and cousin Joseph Potts (Jennifer) of Tulsa; Mother-in-law, Mary Beth Becker (Don), of Highlands, NC ; brother-in-law, Michael Becker (Gloria), of Raleigh, NC; brother-in-law, Christopher Becker (Catherine), of Charlotte, NC as well as cousins, nieces, a nephew and many adoring friends.

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