Cynthia W. Kelly

Cynthia Wiley Kelly, age 80 of Westland, Michigan passed away on August 30, 2022.  She was born in Detroit, Michigan on October 25, 1941 to her parents, the late Glenwood and Marion Frances (nee Smith) Seeba.  She is survived by her husband Steve, daughter Kate and her loving family Nick and Ryan, and son Chris and his wife Barb and their loving family Zac, Sara, Alex, Noah, and Victor.

Cynthia, or “Cindy” as she was best known, attended school in Detroit and graduated from Frank Cody High School in June 1959.  Immediately following graduation Cindy traveled to Mexico where she spent the summer studying at Mexico City College and beginning that fall attended Henry Ford Community College in Dearborn, Michigan. At Henry Ford she was active in various student clubs and activities and held several leadership positions.

Following Henry Ford Community College, Cindy was employed as a then-titled stewardess for Eastern Air Line and was based in both New York City and Chicago.  Cindy thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to travel and for the rest of her life maintained contact with several of her Eastern Air Line coworkers.  When a strike by the Flight Engineers shut down Eastern Airline for an extended time in 1962, Cindy returned to Detroit and went to work for the J.L. Hudson Company in its Human Resources organization. Within a short time she rose to the position of Personnel Manager for the Hudson’s store in Dearborn, Michigan.

She met Steve while they both worked at Hudson’s and they were married on August 15, 1964 when they were each just 22 years old.  Their marriage was an experience of mutual love and devotion to one another and covered a span of 58 years until Cindy’s passing.  Steve has oftentimes commented that everything good in his life was the result their marriage. 

Cindy and Steve were blessed with two children, Christopher (Chris), born in 1967, with Kathleen (Kate) following in 1970.  Cindy’s children and grandchildren were her greatest joy and she loved doing things with them, attending their activities, and just being around them.

When Chris and Kate were both in elementary school, Cindy went back to work and was employed by Wayne-Westland Schools as a paraprofessional.  During her first several years with the school district she worked with Preschoolers and in subsequent years she was assigned to work with elementary age youngsters who were experiencing reading difficulties.  She was dedicated and devoted to interacting with the children and they, in turn, loved her. 

With the birth of grandson Nick in December 2000, Cindy retired from Wayne-Westland Schools and spent the next ten years joyfully providing daycare for both Nick and grandson Ryan who was born in April 2004.  Cindy absolutely loved these years! She was known as “Grammie” to her grandsons, and found absolute happiness in their company.  She always had a secret “stash” of lemon drops that she shared with them and she was a legend for her chocolate chip cookies that she made especially for them.  Her relationship with both Nick and Ryan was truly a mutual bonding and they formed a foundation of complete and unconditional love between them.

Cindy and Steve joined Mt. Hope Congregational Church in Livonia, Michigan in the mid-1970’s and both, but especially Cindy, were active in many church boards and activities over many years.  Cindy, along with Steve, led the church’s Youth Group for several years during the 1970’s and 1980’s.  Church also provided an opportunity for new friendships and Cindy and several others maintained those close ties to the present time.

Caring for others and enjoying friendships was always something fulfilling and a priority for Cindy.  She enjoyed and was devoted to a wide circle of friends not only from church but also from her time working for the school district and, especially, from the neighborhood.  She and several neighborhood friends formed and continued a monthly pinochle card club for over 40 years and when they weren’t playing cards they were visiting in person or on the phone with one another.  The neighborhood friends also enjoyed taking a “girls only” trip each year that began with travel in Michigan but over the years expanded to places including New York and Las Vegas.

Cindy’s best friend for many years has been Rosemary Arakelian.  They met while both attended Henry Ford Community College and remained as unofficial sisters for more than 60 years. Over those years each of them has considered the other to be family and, in fact, both families have developed a closeness that exists to this day.  Through Cindy and Rosemary’s friendship, Steve and Rosemary’s husband, Mike, became closest friends. Both families would vacation together in northern Michigan, spend each New Year’s Eve together, celebrate family birthdays and special events, and be there for each other whenever needed. And thanks to the friendship bond created by Cindy and Rosemary that sense of family connection continues to exist to this day.

In addition to her many other interests, Cindy enjoyed reading, visiting on the phone and in person with friends and family, gardening, learning about and trying to attract butterflies, and walking on the beach hand in hand with her loving husband, Steve.

Friends may visit the Schrader-Howell Funeral Home, 280 South Main Street, Plymouth, Michigan on Friday, September 2, 2022 from 1:00 P.M. until 8:00 P.M.

A Funeral Service will be held at Mt. Hope Congregational Church, 30330 Schoolcraft Road, Livonia, Michigan on Saturday, September 3, 2022 beginning at 10:00 A.M.

Cindy will be laid to rest at Roseland Park Cemetery in Berkley, Michigan.

Those who wish to honor the memory of Cynthia W. Kelly are invited to consider a contribution to Seedlings, Braille Books for Children, P. O. Box 51924, Livonia, Michigan 48154 or online at Braille Books for Children

Contribution envelopes will be available at the Funeral Home.