Obituary
Louise “Leecie” duPuy Rhinelander Doyle passed away unexpectedly on December 8, 2023, at her residence in Orlando, FL, at the age of 85.
Born on June 3, 1938, Leecie spent her formative years in Virginia, where her father was a law professor. She traveled extensively to Europe with her family. An exceptionally bright young woman, she pursued education at institutions including the London School of Economics, Brynn Mawr College, and Barnard College (where she met her future husband, then a law student at Columbia University). As one of the few women of that time to be accepted into Princeton Law School, she later continued her academic pursuits and earned a Masters in Liberal Studies from Rollins College in Winter Park, FL, in 1997.
In 1962, Leecie married and lived in New York City until 1970, when the family moved to Orange Park, FL , and then to Orlando/Belle Isle, FL, in 1977. Throughout her life, she dedicated herself to community service, volunteering with organizations including the League of Women’s Voters of Orange County and Clay County, the Central Florida Urban League, the Christian Service Center for Central Florida, Habitat for Humanity of Greater Orlando, Mothers Against Drunk Drivers Central Florida, and the NYC Dept of Parks and Recreation. She actively participated in environmental initiatives, including the establishment of green spaces, like Barber Park, and preservation efforts for water resources, like the St. John’s River waterway.
Her commitment to good citizenship extended to her volunteering her way into a job at the Orange County Supervisor of Elections office, and later working as a program coordinator At Valencia Community College and at the Institute of Government at the University of Central Florida. Leecie was a strong advocate of women’s rights and leader in support of the Equal Rights Amendment in Florida in the 1970s.
A supporter of the arts, Leecie sponsored the opera and museums, taking particular pride in Lin-Manuel Miranda’s show dedicated to her ancestor, Alexander Hamilton. She loved hockey and baseball, especially the Boston Red Sox and the Tampa Bay Rays.
Preceded in death by her husband of 50 years, John Carol Doyle, and her parents Laurens Hamilton Rhinelander and Lousia (Reed) Rhinelander, Leecie is survived by her children, Stephanie (Scott) Norton, Christopher Doyle, and Andrew (Clare) Doyle, along with grandchildren, Ethan Norton and Eileen Doyle. She is also survived by siblings Tony Rhinelander, Charles Rhinelander, and Eleanor Schofield, as well as numerous cousins, nieces and nephews.
Leecie’s legacy lives on through the green spaces she helped to create and many other environmental improvements, her advocacy for equal rights and improving the lives of the less fortunate among God’s children, and the positive impact she had on the lives of her family and friends. There will be a service to celebrate Leecie’s life on January 20, 2024 at St. Richard’s Episcopal Church in Winter Park, FL. In lieu of flowers, donations in her memory are encouraged to the Alzheimer’s Association or the Michael J Fox Foundation, both charities which she supported.
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