Jeannette Tedesco

"Retired Professor, psychotherapist, kinleiner"

WATERBURY – Dr. Jeanette Tedesco, 84, resident of Waterbury, Middlebury, and Watertown passed away peacefully with her family by her side on November 13, 2025. She was the devoted wife of Anthony Tedesco, retired administrator with the Wolcott Public Schools.

Dr. Tedesco was born in February 1941 in Hartford, a daughter of the late Walter and Julia (Bochenko) Lawrence. Dr. Tedesco received her PhD from the University of Connecticut in 1983 and continued her post-doctoral studies and research at The Institute of Kinlein in Hyattsville, MD.

She retired as a full professor emeritus from Western CT State University in Danbury in 2003, having served as Chair of the Health Science Department and Founder (1997) and Director of The Institute for Holistic Health Studies.

She was the president of the Associates in Kinleining, Inc. in Waterbury where she maintained her private practice as a psychotherapist and Kinleiner.

She was the president of the CT Association for School Health, the Sex Information and Education Council of CT and served on numerous state and national committees on health and education.

Throughout her professional career she presented workshops on various health issues and served as a consultant to public schools developing health curricula. She was a contributing writer in A New View of Being the Human, published in 2011.

She held the position of Treasurer with the American Kinlein Association, SIECCONN, and the CT Holistic Health Association Danbury Branch. She was an active member of LOTUS, (The Educational Center for Integrative Healing and Wellness) at The Harold Leever Cancer Center. Dr. Tedesco was the recipient of several awards for community service and leadership.

Dr. Tedesco was predeceased by her husband of 54 years, Anthony Tedesco, and leaves two sons, Darren Tedesco and his partner Meghan of Boston, MA and their children, Dillon, Noah, and Matthew and Duane Tedesco and his spouse Laura of Plattsburgh, NY, and their children, Owen and Kaelyn.

She leaves two brothers, Walter Lawrence and wife Lois of South Thomaston, ME and David Lawrence and his wife Barbara of Wilmington, North Carolina; two sisters, Joyce Arsenault of Terryville, CT and Shirley Mulka of Vernon, CT.

Arrangements: A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated Monday, December 15, 2025 at 10 a.m. directly at the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception. Burial will be private and at the convenience of her family. There are no calling hours. Chase Parkway Memorial/The Albini Family Funeral Home, 430 Chase Parkway, Waterbury is assisting her family with arrangements.

Contributions and donations can be made online at the Student Scholarship Fund for the Institute for Holistic Health Studies For those wishing to make donations via check, please make them payable to WCSU Foundation, Inc. with "IHHS" noted in the memo to ensure the funds are correctly allocated and mail them to:

Department of Health Promotion and Exercise Sciences

Western Connecticut State University

181 White Street

Danbury, CT 06810