Celestine Boyd

SUCCASUNNA, N.J. — Celestine Boyd of Succasunna, N.J., died Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2008.Celeste, as she liked to be called, was born in Meadville, Nov. 14, 1924, but she lived for a time in New York City and graduated from George Washington High School. She later graduated from New York’s Riverside Business School.Celeste married James Lee Boyd of Erie in 1943, settled in Meadville, and raised three children, Dale, Sondra and James. She was a loyal and steadfast employee of Talon, a local manufacturing firm. Those are the summary facts of her life, but they do not begin to describe her as a person.She was funny, caring and sensitive to the needs of those around her. She always spoke her mind and you always knew where you stood with Celeste. If you didn’t know, she’d tell you. Not many people knew that she was a good pianist with an interest in classical music. She was a world traveler, a writer, an artist and an avid reader, an avocation, which she passed on to all of her children. Socially, she loved to play cards and engage in conversation and a quiet drink with her many friends. She and several other women formed the Towne Club, a social club for black women in the community. The friendships that grew from that venture have lasted to this day.Celeste was not a religious person in the traditional sense of that word. She believed that church was wherever you happened to be at the moment. On those occasions when she did attend religious services, she preferred the Science of Mind Church. She liked their positive message and the notion that we controlled our own destinies. In her later years, she retreated to her books and quiet meditation, but there was always time for family and old friends. In many ways she was an extraordinary woman. We will all miss her.She is survived by her children, Dale Boyd and Sondra Boyd; and her sister, Ella Mae Lee. She also leaves behind three granddaughters, Chakia Clark, Lauren Boyd and Francesca Arruzza; a great-granddaughter, Tania Clark; and several nieces and nephews.There will be a brief memorial service and repast at the Area Agency on Aging, 1034 Park Ave., Meadville, on Saturday at 2 p.m.