Joan Leigh

Joan Hart Leigh, born in Cedar City, Utah on January 11, 1932 to Jane Hart and Jack Urie Leigh, has passed peacefully on May 31, 2024 at the age of 92. Joan lived a life of a curious adventurer, living and traveling to many places. She grew up “lucky to be born here in the Utah mountains to a family who encouraged and allowed me to develop my curiosity and learned to be cautious, but never afraid.” She lived at the Hart Ranch in Newcastle, Utah and with the Leighs in Cedar City, and later lived in Salt Lake City, graduating from East High. She married LaValle Franklin (Mort) Jensen and had two amazing children, Charles Allen (Chuck) Jensen and Rebecca (Becky) Jensen. She later moved to California and raised her children in Woodland Hills, San Francisco, and Big Sur, – a wild and beautiful place that she loved. At this time, Joan traveled to South America, going down the Amazon River, visiting Machu Picchu, and living in Chile. After her children were raised, Joan moved to Bisbee, Arizona near her brother Charley Nelson. There she became a businesswoman operating a motel, a real estate investor, and a college graduate. She graduated from the University of Arizona with a Master’s Degree in Linguistics and later taught in the English as a Second Language program at Cochise College. She absolutely loved being a teacher. This passion for teaching later took her to Vietnam where she taught English, a summer class at Harvard University, and her continued volunteering at East Elementary School in Cedar City.

The last part of Joan’s life was spent in Cedar City, where she bought a home and was content with her friends, family, garden, and enjoyed spending time at the family cabin on Cedar Mountain. She wrote three books, all historical biographies of the lives of family members, friends, and herself. She always had a dog, sometimes more than one, and once said “If there really is a heaven, you will get to be with all the dogs you have ever owned.” Although her children have passed on before her, she is survived by her grandchildren, Chio and Tome Baldocchi, Kenneth Jensen, and Umi and Henry Jensen; her siblings Dan Leigh, Helene Rightenour, and Cherie Shumate; her Aunts Margie and Judy Hart; and many other family members and dear friends including Amy Hart, Duane Harnes and Becky Philliips who faithfully visited her. Per Joan’s wishes, a celebration of life will be held approximately 49 days after her passing and her ashes will be spread at the family cabin on Cedar Mountain, her favorite place to be. Her request for all those she loved is: “Be curious, read, seek adventure, travel, meet new people, love your family, stay close to them, but most of all be curious.”