Leah McCleary passed away June 25th while being treated at the Mayo Clinic. Leah was born in Billings on August 9, 1971 to Mike & Jackie McCleary. She moved with her family to Cascade in 1976 and then to Great Falls in 1979. Leah graduated from Great Falls High School in January 1989, after graduation, she moved to West Yellowstone to work in the restaurant industry.
During the 1990s Leah worked at a number of resorts in West Yellowstone and in the Big Horn Mountains of Wyoming. In these years she was active in outdoor activities including horseback riding, dirt bike races, 4x4 riding and in the winter months snowmobile racing.
In the spring of 2001 Leah became ill with a rare blood disorder that eventually resulted in her receiving a liver transplant in November 2011. After the transplant, she became less active and took up hobbies including jewelry making, motorcycle riding and gardening.
Leah’s love for riding was only overshadowed by her love for gardening. She spent countless hours in her friends and parents’ yards working on their gardens making the world a little more beautiful.
Leah is survived by her parents Mike and Jackie, brother Patrick (Kathy) McCleary, sister Sienna McCleary, nephew Sean and nieces Eileen, Molly, Bridget and Deirdre McCleary.
Leah was a kind person and a free spirit who had a plan for everything. She was loved by her extended family, friends and her many “fur babies” over the years. Her zest for life and compassion for others will be missed. The family will announce a memorial service at a later date.
