Lee Veronica Ward, 58, a resident of Oak Park, died on July 15, 2022, after a brave battle with breast cancer. Born in Washington D.C. on June 14, 1964 to Joan Ward Greene and the late Charles Daniel Ward, she attended Sherwood Elementary School and Bay Port-Blue Point High School on Long Island in New York. She graduated with honors from Cornell University, earned her JD from Northeastern University School of Law in Boston, and earned her master’s in Law from New York University. She was a member of the California and New York State bars.
A scholar at heart, she also excelled in many creative outlets, including sculpture, comedic writing and performing, as well as improv. She was a vegan, a passionate advocate for animal rights, and was committed to eradicating the stigma attached to mental illness.
In 2013 she relocated from Long Island, New York to Oak Park where she was a member of Unity Temple Unitarian/Universalist Congregation.
Lee was the daughter of Joan Green; the sister of Charlie (Alison) Moriarty; the aunt of Oonagh and Tadhg Moriarty; the niece of Betty Anne Clayton and Rowland (Jenny) Moriarty, and the late Joseph Moriarty and his wife Kristen; the cousin of Lisa (Spencer) Macalaster, Brent (Antonia) Sullivan, Jamie (Curt) Lockton, Joseph (Perrin) Moriarty, Meredith Sabye, Michael Moriarty, Thomas Moriarty, Callie (Paul) Chess, and several nephews and nieces, as well as a friend to many.Â
A Celebration of Life will be held at the 19th Century Charitable Association in Oak Park on Saturday Nov. 5 from 12 to 4 p.m. The Celebration of Life program will run from noon to 12:45 p.m. A luncheon will follow the Celebration of Life. Please RSVP by Oct. 28 to Joan Greene at greeneward@yahoo.com if you plan to attend the luncheon.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to NAMI Metro Suburban, 814 Harrison St., Oak Park, IL 60304.
