Leda Mary (Rinaldi) Duff, 93, passed peacefully in the company of her loving family in Sunbury, Ohio.
She was born April 13, 1928, in Morgantown, to the late Joseph and Adele (Maracci) Rinaldi.
In addition to her parents, Leda is preceded in death by her husband, William Bernard Duff; her brother, Aldo Joseph Rinaldi; and her granddaughter, Adele Marie Duff.
Leda graduated from St. Francis De Sales High School in Morgantown in 1945.
Shortly after, Leda married William Bernard Duff in Morgantown, and enjoyed 61 years of marriage at the time of his passing in 2007.
Leda lived most of her life in Morgantown until 2015 before moving to Columbus, Ohio. Leda has always had a very strong Christian faith and was a member of St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Star City. Leda retired from the Monongalia County Assessors’ Office in 1985 after 25 years of service, where she assisted countless attorneys and customers with property taxes and titles. Prior to her employment for the county, Leda served as an officer of the Morgantown Cable Corporation; Morgantown’s first cable company founded by her husband and brother. Leda was an avid reader and card player. Whether she was playing poker and Skip-bo with her children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren or friends or reading three to four books a week, her greatest love was her family. As hectic as large family gatherings would be, she still wanted to hear updates on every person and appreciated being in the know. Leda didn’t know a stranger and always opened her home — be it a football Saturday with homemade pizza and pepperoni rolls or holiday dinners where the main course was homemade ravioli.
In her younger years, Leda was politically active by serving as secretary to the Young Democrats of America as well as attending John F. Kennedy’s Inaugural Ball in 1961. Leda and Bill loved to dance and were members of the Beau Monde Club where they would dance the night away on a regular basis. Leda also loved watching and cheering on her two favorite sports teams: WVU Mountaineers Football and the Pittsburgh Steelers.
In 2015, Leda moved to Dublin, Ohio, where she made many new friends. She earned her way into the “men’s only poker club,” only to show them how it’s done. She enjoyed dining and card playing with new friends and lived independently until May 2020.
Leda is survived by her seven children: Patricia Ann Cress, William (Tara) Duff, Deborah (Douglas) Marks, Michael (Barbara Ludlow) Duff, Joe (Sheri) Duff, David Duff and Kelley (Darren) Holsten; 19 grandchildren, Philip (Elena) Hlohinec, Leigh Ann Hlohinec, Lisa (David) Esmay, Louisa (John) Joerg, Sarah (Jeremy) Marks-Horne, Angela (Tony) Anobile, Laura Jo (Billy Presti) Duff, Joe Bindas, Christy (Mark) Leiter, Grace (Roger) Mann, Noah Duff, Jake Duff, Hannah Duff, Reagan Duff, Danielle Duff, Jordan Holsten, Dominick Holsten, Bella Holsten and Giuliana Holsten; 19 great-grandchildren: Philip Hlohinec III, Dillon Hlohinec and Ryan Hlohinec, Colin Callahan, Connor Aucremane, Gabriella Winiger, Justin Baugh, Jesse (Stephanie) Baugh, Ella Rose Esmay, Jeremy Hunter, Dominique Hunter, Harper Joerg, Austin Joerg, Andrew Anobile, Ashley Anobile, Vivian Leiter, Eleanor Leiter, Nova Mann and Apollo Mann; one great-great-grandchild, coming November 2021, Julian Michael Baugh; niece, Karen (Michael) Cowan; great-niece and nephew, Jillian (Jimmie) Cochran; great-nephew and niece, Alex (Reghina) Cowan; great-great-nephew and niece, Declan and Everly Cochran; and many dear friends that feel like family.
Friends may join Leda’s family to honor her life and legacy at Smith Funeral & Cremation Care, 108 Holland Ave., Westover/Morgantown, from 4-7 p.m., Monday, Sept. 20. Leda will be moved to St. Mary Catholic Church, 3346 University Ave., Star City, where she will lay in repose from 10 a.m., until the celebration of the Mass of Christian Burial at 11 a.m., Tuesday, Sept. 21, with Father James Black, dear friend of the family, and Father John P. McDonough, church pastor, concelebrating. Following the Mass, Leda will be entombed with her husband, Bill, at the St. Mary Peace Garden Mausoleum.
Attendees of the funeral Mass must wear face masks, per requirements of the church.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to St. Ursula’s Food Pantry, P.O. Box 18, Pursglove, WV 26546.
Condolences:
www.smithfcc.com
