Annie Harriet Leyland, age 92, of Levittown, passed away peacefully on October 25, 2018. Ann was born in Springfield, Massachusetts and moved to Brooklyn, New York at the age of seven. She attended school in the Brooklyn public school system. When she was 19, Ann joined the USO during World War II, singing and playing her guitar for the troops all over Europe. After the war, she, her husband Howard and daughter Catherine lived in Philadelphia, then moved to Levittown in 1953, being one of the first home buyers in the new development.Ann enjoyed raising three children and being a stay at home mom. She kept playing her music and began teaching acoustic guitar for many area school districts, including Pennsbury, Neshaminy, Centennial and Lawrenceville, New Jersey. Ann also played many assemblies for the children in schools across the area. She could sing in a variety of languages, which always delighted the kids. But perhaps her greatest joy was entertaining the audiences that filled the Albert Music Hall in Waretown, New Jersey, each Saturday night. It was in this pinelands setting where she always performed at her best. Ann was also an active member of both the Bucks County and Philadelphia Folk Song Societies. In 1977, she graduated from Bucks County Community College with an Associate of Arts degree in mass media and communications. For many years, she pursued her love of writing and worked as a freelance writer, having her articles published in the Bucks County Courier Times, Philadelphia Inquirer, Counselor magazine, and countless others. Ann was a member of Gloria Dei (Old Swedes) church in Philadelphia. Ann also hosted a popular annual summer hootenanny for over 40 years at her home, where many friends and family members would sing and play their musical instruments until the wee hours of the morning. Ann was always a compassionate and cheerful person and loved people. She will be sorely missed. Ann was preceded in death by her husband, Howard Earl Leyland Sr. and daughter, Catherine Maijken Leyland. Ann is survived by her beloved sons, Howard Jr., and Keith. Services are private, although a celebration of life is planned at a later date. Contributions may be made in Ann's name to any group dedicated to saving animals.
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