Jane Stenstrom Leggett

Jane Stenstrom Leggett, a resident of Montclair, New Jersey, died at age 99 on December 8, 2024. She died peacefully in her family home in the care of family members. Her husband of 71 years, Joseph Leggett, predeceased her also at age 99, eight years prior.

Jane was born on October 10, 1925 to parents Paul August Stenstrom of Montclair and Ruth Nyland Stenstrom formerly of Brooklyn, NY. She attended Watchung School, Mt Hebron Junior High, and graduated from Montclair High School in 1943. Her family had commuted to a Swedish Methodist church in Brooklyn until shortly before her father’s death from cancer in 1939. Around age 9, she and her family began attending Grace Presbyterian Church in Montclair where she remained an active member for the rest of her life.

As a teenager, she and a group from the church were sent to a Christian conference in Stony Brook, Long Island. Returning from this inspiring week, the group of teenagers decided to meet together weekly in one another’s homes to continue their spiritual growth. Jane was designated group leader. The adults were skeptical, saying it would last 3 weeks. It lasted 27 years. From this teenage start, Jane went on to lead many other groups and became a popular speaker for The Gideon’s Women’s Auxiliary and Christian Women’s Club. She taught Bible Classes to children and was the superintendent of the Grace Church’s High School Sunday School for many years. Actively volunteering in various community programs, she especially loved serving on the Board of Directors of Heartsease Home in New York City, a program for women.

When asked to lead outreach neighborhood Bible groups to be held in people’s homes, she agreed and became fully committed to this project. She led up to eight groups at a time in New Jersey and then a few more in the Adirondacks and Florida. These groups thrived and continued meeting under her leadership for many years. By the time of her death, she had led groups for 76 years.

She was a person of deep faith who was also the life of the party. She noted that Jesus began his ministry at a party, a wedding reception.

In tributes she has been described as a delightful woman of God, faithful and full spirited with amazing love. She stood for many as a brilliant light in a dark world, charming and witty, sincerely interested in people and supportive of them in their lives and struggles. She was appreciated for her welcoming ways and the questions she asked and the way she listened. An energizer bunny, she was a force for joy and humor as well as a beautiful witness to the goodness and blessing of Christ in her life. Her generosity of spirit and enthusiasm was contagious. She was inspirational, glamorous and magnificent.

Jane was the only child of Paul and Ruth Stenstrom. Following the death of Jane’s father, her mother became the long-time church secretary of Grace Presbyterian Church where Jane met and married her husband, Joseph, in 1945. He also took on multiple leadership roles at the church. They are survived by a son, Paul (Beth), who pastored Grace Church for 39 years before retirement, a daughter, Pamela (Carlos), who has continued Jane’s legacy and work at Heartsease Home (Bowery Mission), and four cherished grandchildren, Elisabeth (Brad), Gwendolyn (Justin), James and Krista. Five great grandchildren: Silas, Eli, Hazel, Faye and Dante are the joy and delight of the family.

Due to a devastating fire at Grace Church in August of 2023, the memorial service will be held at Presbyterian Church of Upper Montclair on Sunday, April 6, 2025 at 3:00pm.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to the rebuild fund at Grace Presbyterian Church , 153 Grove Street, Montclair, NJ 07042, or to The Bowery Mission Heartsease Home at Murry Hill Station , PO Box 2000, NY, NY 10156-2000.