Katherine Sarah Leighton

Katherine Sarah “Kate” Leighton, age 43, died unexpectedly on Tuesday January 6, 2026 at her home in Lunenburg, VT. She is survived by her fiancé, Miguel Rodriguez; her three children, Edmund “Trey” Noonan, Ulla Noonan, and Brigid Noonan; her parents, The Rev. Christopher and Janet Leighton; her maternal grandmother, Althea Dorman; her siblings The Rev. Alexander Leighton, Susannah Leighton, and The Rev. Deborah Leighton; and numerous nieces, nephews, aunts, uncles, cousins, and friends.

Kate graduated from the Stony Brook School and from Southern Connecticut State University, where she was valedictorian of her nursing school class. She worked as a registered nurse in maternal special care at Yale New Haven Hospital.

Kate was brilliant. She was always the funniest person in the room and could make us all laugh until we shook. A talented nurse, she was beloved both by patients and colleagues. We called her “Doc” and consulted her as the family expert on anything medical. She was “the cool aunt,” deeply empathetic and always understanding; her nieces and nephews readily confided in her.

Kate always had the best gossip, the best off-color joke, the best meme for any occasion. She was the first to dive into doing dishes or solving any problem, or cleaning up any mess. She was passionate about human rights and the dignity of all God’s children. She was earthy and ethereal all at once.

A lot of her life she had to sail against the wind, but particularly in the last year she found peace, fulfillment and happiness with Miguel Rodriguez, the love of her life, in a little cabin in the Northeast Kingdom area of Vermont. She had the warmest personality and biggest heart of anyone we’ve ever known, and we are full of gratitude for having her here on this earth as long as we did.

Visitation will be held at 11 a.m. on Saturday, January 17, 2026 at Erickson-Hansen Funeral Home, 411 South Main Street, New Britain, CT. Service for the Burial of the Dead will begin at 12 noon. Interment will follow in Fairview Cemetery.

Guests are invited to wear some red or orange, Kate’s favorite colors, in celebration of her vibrant spirit.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Kate’s name to the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Scholarship Fund of the Interdenominational Ministerial Alliance of Greater Bridgeport at https://www.bridgeport-mlkscholarship.com/