Leone was born to Fred and Ruth Egger (nee Johnson) of Crooks, SD, at McKennan Hospital (a hospital-birth being unusual then), in Sioux Falls, SD (“SF”), on March 2, 1923, and died in her “cozy, little home,” surrounded by family, on February 12, 2026, just a few weeks shy of her 103rd birthday. Though she often said that, “the second century of life is much harder than the first,” to the end, she lived a full and happy life, and she was grateful to the Lord for every day of life. She is loved by many, who dearly will miss her.
The Egger family moved to the Lakeside Dairy Farm when Leone was 11, and she graduated as Class Salutatorian from Harrisburg High School in 1940. She then attended The SD Beauty Academy in SF, and worked as a hairdresser in SF. In 1942, Leone moved to Hollywood, California and worked as a Rosie-the-Riveter in a military-airplanes, manufacturing plant, while taking a dress design class at night, and attending countless parties and going to nightclubs, to swing-dance to the Big Band sounds of some of the World’s, then-most-famous musicians and bands. After a while, Leone returned to SF and worked at Hyde’s Jewelry.
Shortly after the end of WWII, on a train, returning to SF after a weekend in Chicago, Leone saw a man whom she described as “very good looking.” He was Marine Corps sergeant, Robert (“Bob”) Kayl, who was very-happy-to-be-alive,-home,-and-in-one-piece, and was “kinda-sober;” Leone said to him, “Hello.” She was surprised to see him a few nights later, dancing at the SF Arkota Ballroom (El Riad Shrine). The rest was history, as they had a happy marriage, with six children, ending with Bob’s death in 1980.
Leone never remarried, and spent the rest of her life devoted to her children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and Augustana Lutheran Church; she also spent her time writing poetry and her memoir (“A Work In Progress - Memories of Leone Egger Kayl”); traveling the World; attending countless clubs, meetings, conferences, and seminars covering a wide-array of topics, many devoted to books, authors, poetry, painting, what’s-in-the-news, politics, and other topics.
Leone was grateful for experiencing the adage, “May you live in interesting times.” Her grandparents told of the turmoil of the late, 19th Century Europe, which prompted them to emigrate from Europe, and she especially enjoyed the stories told in Swedish by her maternal grandmother, Augusta; uncles, who fought for the U.S. in WWI, and told their stories of the horrors of trench warfare; and she heard many other, firsthand stories of history. During the Great Depression, living on the Lakeside farm near the railroad tracks, she saw and met countless numbers of hobos heading to CA to find work. Her mom, Ruth, and she prepared sandwiches and other snacks for many of the itinerant, out-of-work men.
Leone worked at Minnehaha Country Club 1958-1988, and as the “food demo lady” at Hy-Vee 1989-2013, retiring on her 91st birthday. There, she enjoyed handing out the sample treats, and talking with folks from all walks of life, and from all geographic locations: SF, the surrounding area, and all over the World.
Leone was preceded in death by her grandparents; parents; husband; her only sibling, Betty Robinson and Betty’s husband, Frank; daughter, Cynthia Kayl; her son-in-law, Dr. Bradley Soule III; granddaughter Kimberly Bogh; and a host of many other family and friends, ranging from: born-in-the-19th-Century to members of the Greatest, Silent, Baby Boomer, Millennial, and X Generations.
She is survived by three daughters: Jennifer Soule, SF; Nancy Bogh, Yankton; Michelle Powell (Jay), SF; two sons: Jeffery Kayl (Yuriko), FL/Japan; Brian Kayl (Yeda), NYC; nine grandchildren: Jeffery Kayl, Jr. (Cathy), SF; Christopher Kayl, FL; Jacqueline Hanson (Brett), MN; Kristina Bogh-Calhoun-Sanchez (Ramon), GA; Jesse Buskol, IA; Angela Wilson, TX; Dr. Dylan Powell (Dr. Amanda Boozalis), MN; Betsy Powell (Matthew Duffy), CA; and 14 great-grandchildren scattered throughout the USA.
Leone is survived by other relatives and a countless number of friends, all the way through Generations Y, Z, and Alpha.
Leone loved all of life, especially reading, cooking, baking, chatting over fika, traveling, and dancing, but her family and Augustana Lutheran Church were at the center of her life.
Memorials: please give to Augustana Lutheran Church, at Augustana Lutheran Church, 235 N. Prairie Ave., Sioux Falls, SD 57104.
(The family extends to Rachel and Amanda at Avera Wound Clinic, the Avera Home Hospice staff, Dr. Harvison, Shannon, and Bobbie Jo, a special thanks, for providing to Leone such professional and compassionate care.)
Visitation, with family present, will be held from 5:00 - 7:00 PM on Monday, February 16th, 2026, at Miller Funeral Home Downtown (507 S Main Ave) in Sioux Falls. A prayer service will take place at 6:30 PM during that time. Funeral services will take place at 11:00 AM on Tuesday, February 17th, 2026, at Augustana Lutheran Church (235 N Prairie Ave) in Sioux Falls, with burial to follow at Hills of Rest Cemetery.
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