Obituary of Rosemond Levell

Rosemond Levell was born on Wednesday, March 15, 1939 at Harlem Hospital to Eva Wright and Roseman Hull. She was the second of two children, the first being her beloved brother Dewitt. She died on Saturday, December 26, 2015. Rosemond was named after her dad Roseman, whose first name was his mother's maiden name. She grew up on Morningside Avenue in Harlem. She also lived in Brooklyn, Corona and South Ozone Park. She was a lover of dance who took dance lessons with Mary Bruce School of Dance. She met David S. Levell, Jr. in 1956 soon after graduating high school. In June 1959 they married first settling in St. Albans then Cambria Heights. They had one child, a daughter Marsha. Rosemond was academically gifted, and a life-long learner. She earned an academic diploma from Washington Irving HS, and, although she was accepted into Howard University in Washington, D.C., she decided to stay in New York, taking a job at Home Life Insurance. One of a handful of African-American office workers at that time, she quickly established herself at the company and soon distinguished herself, becoming their first African-American supervisor. She left Home Life Insurance to stay home and raise her daughter. In 1964 she returned to begin a career at Sears Roebucks, ultimately working for a number of prestigious Wall Street firms. While working full-time, in 1967 she decided to continue her education, enrolling in the ACE program at Queens College. Through her characteristic determination and perseverance, she graduated in 1976 with a double major in elementary education and sociology. Rosemond loved to teach, and thoroughly enjoyed teaching children. The financial crisis in NYC during that time made teaching jobs scarce for newly minted teachers. Although she was sought after by area principals, she was unable to secure a permanent classroom. So after three short years of substitute teaching, she left the Board of Education to join the NYS Office of Disability Determinations. Continuing to pursue her deep love of learning, while working there she earned her Master's degree from NYU in 1984. She retired from NYS in 2009 after 30 years of service. Rosemond loved to travel, and was fiercely loyal to her family and to those she considered friends. She was a wonderful caretaker of animals, and from an early age loved and cared for her many dogs and cats, encouraging this love in her daughter Marsha and grandsons Evan and Eric. The constant was that she loved with her whole heart, always seeing the best in people and finding a kind word with anyone she encountered. Rosemond was devoted to her daughter Marsha and grandsons Evan and Eric, who personally cared for her and attended to her needs at the end of her life. She lived with them in Abington, PA for several months as her health was failing. After a few short months she died at their home, with her grandson Eric at her side. She leaves to mourn her memory daughter Marsha, grandsons, Evan and Eric Braggs; daughters by another mother, Doreen Stennett and Angela Burton; sisters-in-laws Delores Mossen, Mamye Levell, and Ruth Levell; nephews Leon and Corey Mossen, Norman Fields, Christopher King, Richard and Roland Kier, and Paul and Vincent Levell; nieces Linda and Gina Fields, Linda McLeod-Williams, Jessica Mossen, Yvonne Levell, and Mikki Barker; and cousins Marilyn Duncan, Sandra Neville, Robert Hull, and many more. She is preceded in death by her parents, Eva and Roseman Hull, her beloved brother, DeWitt Mossen, and her former husband, David Levell. Relatives and friends are invited to her funeral on Wednesday at 10AM at St. David's Episcopal Church, 117-35 235 Street in Cambria Heights. Interment will follow at Plain Lawn Cemetery in Hicksville. In lieu of flowers the family requests donations be sent to: The Women's Center of Montgomery County, The Native American Rights Fund or Planned Parenthood.