Mary Ann Cedarleaf

Our beloved Mother, Grandmother and Great Grandmother went to be with the Lord on December 27, 2018 with family by her side.
Mary was Born to George and Delores Giles in St Paul MN, the fifth of 8 children and oldest of 4 daughters.
In 1950 she married Edward Cedarleaf and they began their 28-year journey as husband and wife. In the late 1960's they moved their family of 9 to Bellevue, WA into the home where she would live for the rest of her life.
Mary always had at least one hobby. She enjoyed painting, decorating and visiting with family and friends. In 1974 she was featured in the Seattle P.I. as the first female umpire in Bellevue and the only female member of the Northwest Umpire Association.
Mary loved people! No matter what the circumstances, she shined when given the opportunity to be social. It is her smile and laugh that those who loved her will remember most.
She sought out jobs working with Seniors and she thoroughly enjoyed being an activities director. During her years working at Sunset Hills she shared her loving and empathetic disposition. Over the years she received dozens of letters and thank you notes from families for her care and compassion in working with their loved ones.
Mary was an avid volunteer and spent many years as a member of the Ladies Auxiliary and Color Guard out of the Redmond VFW Post #2995. It was her spirit that drove her to join in and learn and be involved and she loved every minute of it. She was a proud American.
Mary enjoyed life, she loved to laugh, have a cocktail here and there and she had an opinion about everything [and wasn't afraid to share it]. She was strong – she didn't let circumstances beat her down and she kept on doing what she needed to do to survive. If you asked her about her life, she would have told you it wasn't easy, but she was filled with determination.
Even at 90 years old, when her body was frail and failing, she fought with all her might. When the doctor said she had 12 -24 hours left and started comfort care, she continued to squeeze any hand that took hers up until the very end. She was determined not to let go. It wasn't surprising that it was over 23 hours later when she took her final breath.
Mary was preceded in death by her parents George and Delores Giles; her brothers LaVerne, Donald, Eugene and Francis Giles.
She is survived by her sisters Anita, Janice and Patricia; her children Mark, Timothy (Kristen), Guy, Kellie, Brian, Bart and Paul (Sue); 10 grandchildren, and 12 great-grandchildren and numerous nieces, nephews and so on.
A celebration of Mary's life will be held at Sunset Hills Memorial Park at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, February 16, 2019.