Clayde Lewis passed away at age 79, in her home in Akron, Ohio, the morning of October 5, 2016. Clayde was born and raised in Bedford, Ohio, and was the daughter of Mildred and Louis Kuster, sister to Eileen and Verna.
Clayde was an intelligent, fiercely independent woman with a sharp wit. She was also incredibly generous and will be greatly missed by her son Sage, grandson Indiana, daughter-in-law Rocky and her many family and friends near and far.
Clayde graduated from Bedford High School in 1955 where she was involved in theater, band, choir and many other activities. Clayde went to Ohio State University for her teaching degree, but one of her fondest jobs was at The May Company in downtown Cleveland. She also loved the kids she met as suspension students at Medina High School and enjoyed collecting data for the United States Census Bureau at the turn of the century.
She spent over 25 years living and working in Medina, OH, both at Medina High School and The Medina Country Club. She moved to Akron in 2005 and loved her time near the Art Museum, Stan Hywet, free park concerts and all the places where she regularly took her young grandson as his daytime caregiver. She ran her dog sitting business from Akron too and never met a dog she didnt like or who didnt love her!
Clayde was a voracious reader, and she read so much, so often, she began to catalog her finished books on index cards to avoid re-reading them. Her love of story was reflected in her love of telling stories too, and she was great at relating a tale to the conversation at hand.
She was a single mother who made many sacrifices to raise her son, Sage, and she was tremendously proud of the man he had become. She was also grateful for her family, friends and her rich life and she shared her gratitude often.
Clayde passed from Heart Failure, COPD and a short fight with dementia, which took from her the ability to read and speak with friends on the phone. She never minded the first two diagnoses, having smoked a pack a day for over 50 years, she accepted those medical fates gracefully. But, of dementia, she said often to nurses and family, Make sure you dont get this. Its just awful. Thankfully, she was able to go be in peace within 6 months of her diagnosis.
The family would like to thank the care team from Summa Home Hospice for making Claydes transition from life to what lies beyond so much more calm and comfortable.
There will be a brief memorial service, immediately followed by a reception, on Tuesday, October 18, 2016 at 15 Broad Street, Akron, OH, 44305 between the hours of 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. People are welcome to attend the service at 4:00 or simply drop in for the reception anytime after 4:30.
Clayde asked that memorials be made to:
Spring Garden Waldorf School, 1791 South Jacoby Rd., Copley, OH 44321 or online at http://sgws.org/sgws-parents/support/
Summa Health Foundation-51140 (Hospice of Summa), P.O. Box 2090, Akron, OH 44398-6153
Paid For By The People for Sage Lewis