Obituary of Anne Leigh Rudeen, Author, Teacher and Force of Nature

Anne Leigh Rudeen, Author, Teacher and Force of Nature, Moves on to Next Adventure The author of six published novels and a unique, independent spirit who left an indelible impression on everyone who knew her, Anne Leigh Rudeen passed away peacefully at her home in South Salem, N.Y., on Sunday, July 3, 2016. She was 85, although her outlook and energy level was far more youthful. Her passions included attending rock concerts, taking Zumba classes, reading the New York Times, creating art projects, and generally making everywhere she lived and every life she touched all the better for her presence. A resident of South Salem for more than 50 years, she also owned a home in New Port Richey, Florida, where she spent each winter season. Anne Leigh Rudeen, née Snyder, was born on June 27, 1931 in Topeka, Kansas, to Frances Louise and John Thomas Snyder. The Snyder family, which included Anne’s younger sister, Patricia, settled in Great Bend, Kansas, where her father worked for the electric company and owned a hardware store. Anne’s stories about growing up in Great Bend, which is in America’s geographical center or as Anne put it, the “belly button” of the United States, were highly entertaining and memorable. Anne attended Great Bend High School, then spent her senior year at a Ward Belmont College in Nashville, Tennessee, where she was a self-described “floorboard debutante”, going hunkering down on the floorboards of the cars of forbidden beaux to hide as they drove through school grounds. She was admitted to Kansas University in Lawrence, Kansas, and pledged the Chi Omega sorority. An English major and member of the college newspaper staff, she met Kansas City resident and fellow KU student Kenneth Rudeen at “The Shack” where the school newspaper was published. Ken Rudeen, KU college correspondent for the Kansas City Star at the time, frequently phoned in his stories to the paper from The Shack. The two were married in Great Bend just days after they were graduated from KU − Anne with Phi Beta Kappa honors − in 1951. Ken was drafted into the Army during the Korean War, primarily serving in Baltimore, Maryland, where Anne worked as a teacher. Once Ken was discharged from the Army, he was hired by Sports Illustrated magazine in New York City. He and Anne moved to New York, where she was employed by Time Inc. and also worked at International House. After the birth of their child, Louisa Ellis, Anne enjoyed taking her to Central Park and the Metropolitan Museum, only a few blocks away from their Park Avenue apartment. In 1965, the Rudeen family moved to South Salem, N.Y., purchasing the house Anne owned until her passing. She worked as a substitute teacher for the Katonah-Lewisboro School District, primarily at John Jay High School. One of her former students recently said: “When ‘Mrs. Rudeen’ came in to sub a class we always knew it would be a very interesting hour.” Anne published her first novel, Summerblood, with Warner Books in 1978. It was followed by American Royal (Warner) in 1980, and Jam Archer and Wild Dalton in 2008. With her daughter Louisa, Anne co-wrote Tessa of Destiny (Avon Books) in 1980 and Green Lady (Avon Boks) in 1981, under the pseudonym Leigh Ellis. She also collaborated with Ken on a series of children’s books he wrote about sports heroes, published by HarperCollins in the 1970s. Ken continued working for Sports Illustrated until 1996, ultimately attaining the position of Assistant Managing Editor. Thanks to his career, Anne and Ken attended innumerable memorable sporting events, including Grand Prix races, World Series finals and Olympic Games. They covered every America’s Cup from 1970 until Ken’s death in 2003. Even after his passing, Anne attended the America’s Cup in Valencia, Spain, in 2010, and planned to go to the Cup in Bermuda in 2017. Anne Rudeen is survived and beloved by her daughter, Louisa Rudeen Beckett; son-in-law Gary Beckett; sister, Patricia Trebilcox; godson Jay Grimm, nieces and nephews Jeff Grogger, Liz Grogger, Vicki Gauss, Connie Watrous, Aleen Dennis, Bill Bleich and Kenny Bleich; grandchildren Kaitlyn Beckett and Kalea Beckett, grandnephew Miles Grogger, and countless other people who loved her. In lieu of flowers, donations made Anne’s name to the Humane Society of Pasco County, http://www.humanesocietyofpasco.org/donations/ or to the animal rescue society of your choice would be greatly appreciated.