Leo W. LeClaire, 89, died at home, Saturday, October 17, following a period of declining health. He is survived by his wife of 64 years, Barbara (Hayes) LeClaire; three sons, Bruce W. LeClaire, of Medfield, Brian LeClaire, and his wife, Beth, of Naples, FL, and Brent LeClaire, and his partner, Dorothy Bouley, of Barrington, RI; and five grandchildren, Nathan, Nicholas, Naomi, Noah, and Joshua LeClaire. He was predeceased by his siblings, Anita Belanger, William LeClaire, Lucille Gniadek, and Ernest LeClaire.
Leo was born, December, 1930, in Uxbridge, a son of William and Bertha (Labonte) LeClaire. He grew up in Uxbridge and lived in Medfield for 54 years. He was a 1948 graduate of Uxbridge High School, where he was an outstanding athlete, and he earned a B.S.E.E. at Ohio University in 1960, following service in the Marine Corps, where he saw action in Korea and was one of 2,000 on-site witnesses to test explosions of the atomic bomb at Desert Rock, Nevada. Leo also held an M.B.A. from Babson College.
Leo worked at Polaroid Corporation for 22 years where he was Head of Plant Engineering and Human Resources Director prior to retiring in 1988. Previously, he worked at Bethlehem Steel, NCR, and RCA.
An independent, competitive individual, Leo enjoyed an active retirement, running marathons, including 11 consecutive Boston Marathons, gardening, coaching his grandson's youth sports teams, and he was an avid golfer. He also always enjoyed a good meal with family and friends.
Leo's Funeral Mass will be held at 11am, Thursday, October 22, in Saint Mary's Church, Uxbridge. Burial will follow in the parish cemetery. Calling Hours will be 5-7pm, Wednesday, October 21, in the Carr Funeral Home, 24 Hill Street, Whitinsville. Please omit flowers. Memorial donations are requested to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital (https://www.stjude.org), 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, TN, 38105.
To send flowers
to the family or plant a tree
in memory of Leo W. LeClaire, please visit our floral store.