Mrs. Sarah W. "Sally" Kleemann

Mrs. Sarah W. "Sally" Kleemann, age 81, of Valatie New York, passed away on Thursday, September 12, 2024 at the Lorelton Assisted Living Community, Wilmington DE.
Sally was born on January 25, 1943 in Evansville, Indiana. She was the second of Margerie Erwin and Philip Woolworth's three children. She attended Penn State University Behrend in Erie, PA and New York University. Prior to her retirement, she was the Assistant to the Chief Justice (Judge Judith Kay) at the New York State Court of Appeals for over 45 years. She was a longtime resident of New York's Hudson Valley.
Sally loved the arts, and was an avid photographer and writer. She and her husband, Ron Kleemann, enjoyed entertaining and ballroom dancing. They were known for hosting parties at "the Mill," an old repurposed lumber mill in Stockport, New York, that they renovated. She was a fan of legal and crime dramas and wrote an unpublished crime novel called "Loving Justice".
Ron Kleemann was a well-known photorealistic painter, and Sally and her daughter Tracey were often asked to photograph source material for his paintings. For a series of paintings of Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade balloons, she and Tracey were stationed on Broadway at different corners to capture the balloons from various angles. Sally and Ron loved to travel and were known to enjoy a Manhattan (or two) on special occasions.
Sally filled her homes with art, antiques, and animals. At one point, she had 7 cats and dogs living with her, with the seventh pet appropriately named "Seven." She and her sister Susan enjoyed recounting a favorite memory from their Indiana childhood of riding the neighbor's horses bareback without permission. They also once adopted a rattlesnake and pulled it around in a wagon until the neighbor informed them that it was a deadly snake.
In addition to her late parents, she was preceded in death by her loving husband, Ronald Kleemann; and her daughter, Tracey Houlihan. She is survived by her stepson, Gunnar (Karen) Kleemann; two granddaughters, Belle Kleemann and Tara Kleemann; her sister, Susan (John) Stafford and her brother, Philip S. (Carol) Woolworth.
Services are private and will be held at the convenience of the family. Memorial contributions may be made in Sally's honor to the Columbia-Greene Humane Society (https://cghs.org/about/)
Services have been entrusted into the care of Williams Funeral Home and Burial Services. Online condolences may be made and viewed at www.302funerals.com.