Louis James Leonard Sr. passed away peacefully on September 2nd, 2026 in Bowie, Maryland. Born in Johnstown, Pennsylvania on February 28th, 1942, to Helena and James Leonard. He was the youngest of three children. He was the example of a life well lived; he was the life of the party and a social butterfly. Louis was an exceptional husband and father. He met the love of his life, Roberta in the 1960's in Colorado. They married in 1964 and moved to Maryland where they lived for over 40 years and raised a family. Lou was very involved with the St. Bernard's Catholic Church in Riverdale Maryland, where he coached football and basketball for the CYO. He was also an assistant football coach for Bladensburg Highschool. Lou was a police officer with the Metropolitan Police Department in Washington DC for over 29 years, retiring in 1993. He and Roberta then moved to Colorado and spent several years in retirement bliss. Eventually, they moved back to Maryland to be closer to family.

He is preceded in death by his wife, Roberta; mother, Helena; father, James; sister, Madeline; and brother, Jack; as well as two granddaughters, Abigail and Elaina.

He is survived by his children, Lisa Zell, Louis Leonard Jr. and Leslie Yankowy (Scott). He is also survived by his grandchildren, Katie Cool (Mike), Conor Zell (Emily), Wesley Leonard (Ashley) and Michael Yankowy. He had 4 great grandchildren, Leah Maus, Harper Cool, Lila Leonard and Waylon Leonard.

A memorial service will be held at Donaldson Funeral Home & Crematory, P.A., 1411 Annapolis Road, Odenton, Maryland on September 15th, 2026 at 11:30AM.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to the Alzheimer's Association using the link below.

https://www.alz.org/maryland