Lesley Arnett Tujague died at Pardee Hospital on Jan. 4, after a short illness. She was born Lesley Ruth Arnett on April 16, 1962, in Pittsburgh, Penn., and grew up in nearby Edgewood. She graduated from The Ellis School and Chatham College in Pittsburgh, where she majored in English and Russian literature with a minor in art history, and she earned teaching credentials from California University of Pennsylvania. During her Chatham years, she was an exchange student at Berea College in Kentucky. For nine years on St. Thomas, Virgin Islands, Lesley taught English at Charlotte Amalie High School, taught ballet, created award-winning Carnival costumes and grew orchids.
Lesley came to North Carolina in 1996 and lived here until she was married and moved to Pittsburgh in 2001. She returned to North Carolina with her daughter in 2007. A talented seamstress and designer, she created historically accurate costumes for re-enactments and local theater productions.
She is survived by her five-year-old daughter, Sarah; her parents: Will and Pat Arnett of Hendersonville; her sister, Susie Nivin and her husband David of Santa Barbara, and their children James and Heather; her brothers: John Arnett of Hendersonville, and Nick Arnett and his wife Cindy of Santa Clara, California, and their daughter Carrie.
A memorial service was held on Friday, Jan. 15, at the First United Methodist Church of Hendersonville. Children were welcome. In lieu of flowers, gifts may be made to the Sarah Yvette Tujague Educational Trust (c/o Will and Pat Arnett) 616 Erkwood Drive, Hendersonville, NC 28739 or the charity of your choice.
