Nancy Carol Leissing (Orlando, FL) passed away peacefully in her home on the afternoon of April 1, 2023. The beloved only child of the late William and Margaret Dew, she is survived by her three daughters- Julia Joy Leissing, Margaret Rebecca (Jonathan) Leissing, and Karin Samantha Leissing and her only grandchild, Jonathan Louis Abellon Jr. She is also survived by her cousin Janet Guerrina and other relatives from around the country.

Nancy Carol Dew made her debut at the start of 1947 on New Years Day as the first baby of the year in East Orange, New Jersey. She graduated from East Orange High School in 1964. Nancy married Fred Leissing in 1967 and they had a long marriage before their divorce in 2014. In 1968, she graduated with a BSc in Chemistry from Upsala College. Shortly after getting married, she and Fred moved to Australia and lived in Sydney for three years where they made some lifelong friends before moving back stateside.

She worked as a Research Biochemist for Schering Plough in New Jersey while she pursued her graduate studies in Chemistry at Seton Hall University in South Orange, New Jersey. She received her MSc in 1974 and completed her PhD in biochemistry in 1981.

In 1977, Nancy relocated to Chicago, Illinois. She worked at Baxter International in Research and Development as the Director of Biomedical Research, where she managed the bioanalytical laboratories. At Baxter she developed her expertise in Clinical Chemistry and was the Director of their Licensed Clinical Laboratory (CLIA ’88, HHS). While at Baxter she obtained her MBA from the Booth School at the University of Chicago.

Nancy and Fred adopted their daughters Julia Joy Leissing and Margaret Rebecca Leissing from South Korea as infants in 1985 and 1990, respectively. In 1998, they adopted Karin Samantha Leissing at the age of 14 from Hong Kong. One of Nancy’s favorite places to visit with her family for the holidays and summer vacations was their condo in Freeport, Grand Bahamas where they would soak up the warm sandy beaches, crystal clear water, and tropical sunshine.

In 1998 she was recruited to join Griffith Analytical in Burr Ridge, Illinois as Vice President responsible for realigning the company for private sale. After the sale in 2000 she became the VP of Technical Operations & Regulatory QA at Lifesource, Chicago’s Blood Bank. She holds 2 patents, authored the book Trissels Tables of Physical Compatibility and published 14 articles in peer reviewed journals.

Nancy and her family moved to Orlando in 2003 to enjoy her retirement. She was an active member of the Hunter’s Creek Tennis Association and loved to play every Wednesday and Friday. Nancy was a member of the Winter Park University Club, where she enjoyed many games of Canasta and dinner events. As an avid theme park enthusiast she held season passes to Disney, Universal, and SeaWorld. She loved to travel both domestically and abroad and no matter where she visited, she made connections with new people. Nancy loved good food, great laughs, and cherished quality time with her family and friends.  Nancy leaves behind her daughters, son-in-law, precious grandson, cousins, and many beloved friends and neighbors.

A Celebration of Life will be held at 6:00pm on Sunday, May 14 at the Orlando Science Center

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