Wendy Estelle Levine

Wendy Estelle (Idelson) Levine
12/26/1938 – 1/24/2024

Wendy Estelle Levine, 85, of Fuquay-Varina, North Carolina, sadly left us following a battle with dementia. She is survived by her elder daughter, Janice Sitzes (John Swartz), and grandcat, GK, of Cary, NC; younger daughter, Jeanette Timmons (husband Michael) of Princeton, NJ; grandsons, Liam Timmons and Forrest Timmons; and nieces, nephews, and cousins.

Born in Johannesburg, South Africa, Wendy graduated from the prestigious Barnato Park School for Girls Johannesburg High School. She immigrated to the United States in 1960 to marry Robert Levine from Brooklyn, New York, whom she met in Edinburgh, Scotland while she was living with her sister and brother-in-law. While raising her family on Long Island, she helped establish and grow the audio-visual collection at Oceanside Public Library. After her divorce in 2009, she lived in Hewlett, Long Island before moving to Princeton, NJ and subsequently Cary, NC.

She will be remembered for her quick wit and her passion for expanding her horizons both literally and figuratively. A worldwide traveler, she visited six of the seven continents. She loved and excelled at gardening, entertaining, and dancing. She instilled in her daughters her love of the arts, enjoying the ballet, symphonic concerts, live theatre, movies, and museums. Her sense of humor, combined with her love of the arts, led to her request that the song, “Ding-Dong! The Witch is Dead,” be played at her funeral.

She was an avid reader of books and her beloved New York Times; she insisted on doing its crossword puzzle in ink. A die-hard tennis fan, she loved attending the U.S. Open and Winston-Salem Open, and watching the Tennis Channel. Although her greatest joy was derived from her children and grandchildren, she took great pride in being an early member of a women’s cycling group and her volunteer work with the Guide Dog Foundation for the Blind.

She was preceded in death by her parents, Joseph and Florence Idelson, and sisters, Daphne Horwitz and Rona Kolvin. A celebration of life will be held on Long Island the weekend of June 8-9. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to the Alzheimer’s Association or to the animal rescue group of your choice.