Cecilia A. Meyer, 81, of Marion passed away peacefully Sunday morning, June 3 at Memorial Hospital of Carbondale. Either by holding a phone to her ear or being able to sit by her side holding her hand, each of her four children were able to have a little "mom" time before she passed.
Funeral services will be at 12pm on Thursday, June 7, 2018 at Our Redeemer Lutheran Church in Marion with Rev. Dan Whitfield officiating. Visitation will be from 5:00pm -8:00pm, Wednesday, June 6 at the church. Blue Funeral Home will be assisting the family with the services. Burial will be at Rose Hill Cemetery in Marion. Memorials may be made to the American Heart Association or to Our Redeemer Lutheran Church and will be accepted at the church or the funeral home.
Cecilia was born on November 11, 1936 in Pipestone County, Minnesota. She was the daughter of Bert and Leona Kinney and the middle sister of Stacy Miller and Ruth Ann Greathouse. She married her sweetheart, Stan Meyer, on December 4, 1955. Together they were blessed with 54 years of marriage before he passed away in September of 2009.
She is survived by her five children, Robert Meyer and Brenda Grant of Marion, Lori and Randy Hancock of Indianapolis, Leslie and Jeff Somers of Marion, Jeffrey Meyer of Marion and Scott Meyer of Herrin. Cecilia is Gramma Cec to her grandchildren Christina Meyer, Jenny Hanks, Brittany Richardson, Caitlin Delk, Kelsie Carey, Rani Somers and Zachery Meyer. She is lovingly known as Gigi to her great-grandchildren Addison, Aiden, Ameadeaus, Braden, Dakota, Brockton, Briley, Evan, Jack and Molly. She is also survived by her two sisters, Stacy and Ruth, a brother-in-law Forrest Duckworth and her sister-in-law Carol Meyer of Minnesota.
She was preceded in death by her husband, Stan; her parents Bert and Leona Kinney; a great-grandson, Landon Meyer; and her brothers-in-law Dennis Meyer and Gene Greathouse.
Cec was a stay-at-home mom for her five kids until the family moved to Marion, Illinois. By that time, all five children were enrolled in school; therefore, she accepted a receptionist position at Peoples Bank working directly under Gerald Feezor. Mom and Gerald were the only two employees at that time, thus becoming the start of a 30 year career in banking which she loved. She saw Peoples Bank transition to Central Bank and then to US Bank what it remains as today. During that tenure, she became lifelong friends with not only many of the customers that came through the door, but also with fellow employees. Three of those friends, known simply as "the girls" forged a bond that only became stronger as the years went on. They've been with her in every situation of her life from retirement to the death of her husband through every health scare she incurred. They've transported her, cooked for her, sat with her, prayed for her and gave her an endless amount of hugs and I love you's. Yvonne, Janet, Mary Jane and Denise were an extension of our family. Our heartfelt thanks to these strong ladies.
Cec had always enjoyed many hobbies such as baking, sewing, crocheting and floral arranging. After the loss of her husband, a neighbor friend invited mom to come with her painting one Tuesday morning. She hadn't picked up a paint brush in over 40 years. She fell back in love with painting and her artistic side showed through. Every Tuesday, she joined a group of ladies nicknamed "the art ladies" and painted, ate and gabbed. It was the highlight of every week. She quickly forged new friendships with these ladies. She always found it funny that at the age of 73 she would find this new group of friends. She and her bestie, Betty, would head out about once a week in search of the perfect place to eat only to settle on pizza and a cold beer. Night after night, she'd paint for hours. All her children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren, and many friends have been blessed with one or more of her paintings. She was gifted beyond measure. She was always humbled when one of her paintings earned her a ribbon. We'd like to thank one of these art ladies, Karen, for taking her and bringing her home on these Tuesdays for the last year or two when she was unable to drive herself. She was always so appreciative of this.
We've been blessed by the unconditional love our mother has given each us since our first breaths. She was sentimental about everything; always trying to teach us where this or that had come from in the family tree. She would always remind us that family came first. She loved her Lord with all her heart. She started and ended everyday with her prayers. She was a devoted member of Our Redeemer Lutheran Church since the beginning. Oh how she loved her church family. They've been faithful prayer partners to her. Our mom dealt daily with numerous health problems. In 2016 it became apparent that some at home help was necessary. Sabrina then entered her life. She helped care for mom three days a week doing anything and everything to help her continue to live independently. Mom relied on her and always looked forward to her Sabrina days. Simply put, she loved her. Thank you, Sabrina, for being there for mom when we couldn't. Mom faced these health issues with a lot of faith and prayer and a dash of sassy. There were days she couldn't handle it which brought out the crankiness in her, only to turn it around and fight through it giving thanks to God for helping her through it. She was blessed with several wonderful physicians through the years. We'd like to thank Dr. Panchamukhi and the heart cath team at Memorial Hospital of Carbondale for their expertise and compassion during our hospital stay these last few days. The 3rd floor nurses were extraordinary. A special thank you to our nurse, Tammy, who was with mom and us in the final hours. Thank you for showing compassion and grace as we sat with mom waiting for her to take her last breath. Thank you for giving us uninterrupted time afterwards to grieve. You are truly an angel. Our mother had the biggest heart and in the end, it was that organ that died first. Heaven has her now.