Kalas Funeral Home & Crematory

Celeste Leffingwell Loftin, 73, a long-time Asheville resident, passed away unexpectedly in Annapolis, Maryland, on October 4th. She was in Annapolis visiting her grandchildren.

Celeste, also known as “Suzy” to childhood friends and family, was born on April 30, 1940 at the Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, MD, and at less than a week-old moved to New York City, where her father, Charles Brooks Leffingwell of Bradenton, Florida, was a pilot in the early days of commercial aviation. Her mother was Celeste Armfield Leffingwell of Monroe, North Carolina. Her trip north made the New York newspapers, as she was the youngest passenger to have flown at that time.

Celeste grew up in Coral Gables, Florida, where her father flew military supply transports in support of the WWII war effort and then Clipper Ships for Pan American World Airways, commonly known as Pan Am, and her mother founded the Coco Plum Kindergarten. Her parents had met in Cuba, where her mother taught school on the Isle of Pines, and her father was a barnstorming pilot. 

She spent weekends with her paternal grandparents in Bradenton, FL and summers with her mother's sisters in North Carolina. She graduated from Coral Gables High School (1958) and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Nursing (B.S.N.1962), where she was a member of Chi Omega. After practicing as a Registered Nurse for a time, she followed her father into aviation by becoming a Pan Am Stewardess – as they were then called.

Celeste married Carl Wainwright Loftin, a young Asheville lawyer, in August, 1964, and resided in Asheville for the next 42 years where she resumed her nursing career. During her long career, she cared for patients suffering from psychiatric and geriatric illnesses as well as Hospice and AIDS patients. 

While in Asheville, Celeste was a member of the Junior League, served on both the state and local ABC Boards, the Civil Service Board, and was the Director of the local Planned Parenthood for several years. Celeste was very active in both local and statewide Democratic politics, having been chosen as a delegate to the 1972 Democratic National Convention.
Celeste was an active member of All Souls Episcopal Cathedral and also attended Grace Episcopal Church.

In 2006, Celeste moved to San Francisco to resume life with her college beau, Dr. John McLeod “Mac” Griffiss. They divided their time between San Francisco and Annapolis. Her last few years were spent traveling, enjoying nature, reconnecting with old high school, college, and Pan Am friends, going to the ballet and to Giants games, and spending time with her grandchildren.

Celeste was preceded in death by her parents and her brother, Brooks Armfield Leffingwell. She is survived by her partner, John McLeod Griffiss; her ex-husband, Carl Wainwright Loftin of Asheville; daughters, Susan Brooks Loftin of Asheville and Patricia Landis Loftin of Willow, Alaska; her son, Edward Armfield Loftin and his partner, Sarah Elizabeth Brewer, and their children, Grace Adelaide Loftin and Samuel Wainwright Loftin of Annapolis. She is survived also by a brother, John McNeil “Mac” Johnston, of Wilton, Connecticut.

A celebration of Celeste's life will be held on Saturday, November 9 at 2PM at Grace Episcopal Church, 871 Merrimon Avenue, Asheville, NC 28804. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations can be made to the Western North Carolina AIDS Project, 30 Orchard St, Asheville, NC 28801 or to Planned Parenthood, http://pphs.org/cart. An online guest book is available at www.kalasfuneralhomes.com.

Celeste Loftin

Celeste Loftin

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