Leola Hardy

Leola “Lee” Margaretha Hardy died unexpectedly in her sleep from heart failure at home on June 9, 2022 at the age of 71. Born January 31, 1951 in Sacramento, CA, Lee’s adopted community of Newport became both her family and her passion. She sat on the city’s Housing Committee, Vacation Rental Committee, and the Planning Commission. As owner and manager of Yaquina Bay Property Management for over 30 years, she cared deeply about both her clients and her employees. She earned high praise for her work ethic, broad experience and wealth of knowledge. She could be relied upon to respond promptly to a leaking pipe at midnight, coordinate the complex resources to shore up the foundation of a 30 unit condo complex, or pause to help a friend in need.

Lee’s history was dynamic. She graduated San Juan High School Salutatorian and voted Most Likely to Succeed in 1969. She earned her AS degree from ARC in Sacramento in 1971. In June 1973, she was one of the first two women ever hired by CA Agricultural Dept to work Border Inspection, both stationed at Hornbrook. She earned her BS in Botany at OSU Corvallis in 1976. Afterwards, working for Emergency Services, Lee scrambled to score expiring grant money to procure three ambulances for rural Benton County. She followed Emergency Services to Newport, where, prior to entering the field of Real Estate, she was a co-owner of the Shannon Art Gallery.