Leslie Nesin

Reverend Leslie Francis Nesin, born May 14, 1944, in Dayton, Ohio, died peacefully on April 29, 2025, in Bangor, Maine, having left a significant impact on her world.

Leslie was the daughter of Grace and Colonel Grover Greene and devoted sister to Sherry Greene and Kathleen Greene. She was a wonderful aunt to her nieces and nephew: Diane Carbonell, Andrea Spiezio, Karen Varney, Sarah Patterson, and George Pizer as well as their children and spouses. She was the loving wife of the late Dr. Bourcard Nesin, and caring step-mother/grandmother to Peter, Babette, Barbara, Elizabeth, Noah, Janet (deceased), Joe, and Gert. Her grandchildren/great-grandchildren and their spouses will remember her fondly; Matthew, Drake, Renee, Merle, Katherine, Robin Alistair, Gordon, Sadel, Abigail, Sandy, Eliana, Marje, Asher, Statia, Leta, Ryker, Myrtle, Adi, Rowan, Bourcard, Lilo, and Vinni. She shared her love of the outdoors with them through canoeing, fishing, and camping at Lobster Lake.

Being the child of a father who served in the US Air Force, Leslie moved many times as a child. Her family lived in Ohio, Alabama, Germany, Virginia, and Georgia. Leslie graduated valedictorian from high school in Savannah, Georgia. After high school, Colonel Greene took his final position as Base Commander at Dow Air Force Base in Bangor, and connected Leslie to Maine.

Leslie had a long career in Maine as a well-respected nurse. She received her RN from Johns Hopkins, and moved to Bangor to start her career at the former Eastern Maine General Hospital. There, she worked in the cardiac unit. She moved to Lincoln to become Head Nurse at Penobscot Valley Hospital, where she met her future husband.

On July 20, 1986, she married Dr. Bourcard Nesin in the backyard of their family home in Howland. They were well matched and shared many experiences during their marriage, including puzzles and games at which they were fierce competitors, walking and paddling around Howland, tending plants in their greenhouse and gardens to eat and share, and a cross country trip in their pop-up camper.

Her second calling was as a Priest of the Episcopal Church for over 20 years, after completing her Master of Divinity at the Bangor Theological Seminary. Over her career, she led the Episcopal churches in Palmyra, Houlton, and Winn. Through Leslie's life and work, she put others before herself in service of her community, church, and family. Leslie did volunteer pastoral work with her therapy dogs at the Penobscot County Jail and the Charleston Youth Detention Center. She volunteered with Save a Life and the food cupboard in Lincoln, and the Howland Planning Board. In whatever she did, Leslie brought her intelligence, kindness and devotion.

Leslie had a lifelong sense of curiosity and adventure: whether it was reading a wide variety of books, playing games with anyone willing, exploring the backroads, trails, rivers, and streams in Maine, traveling to far off places, or adopting a new dog or stray cat. Animals held a special place in Leslie's life.

Leslie is missed dearly by her family. She will forever live on through their stories and memories.

A service in celebration of her life will be Wednesday, May 14 at 11 A.M. at the Church of the Good Shepherd Episcopal Church, 116 Main Street in Houlton. All are welcome.

In lieu of flowers, please send donations to the Church of the Good Shepherd, 116 Main Street, Houlton, ME 04730