Sadie Lewis

Sadie Lewis

Sadie Lewis, all around spitfire and lover of life, died at the age of 91 on Tuesday, October 12, 2010 due to complications from Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary (Lung) Disease (COPD).
As a young girl growing up as Sadie Rizk in a delightfully diverse, strong family-oriented inner city neighborhood in Detroit, MI, she played softball, attended school, and worked daily in her father's grocery and butcher store.
Parents Elias G. and Mary Raheejah (Kuri) Rizk were both born in Dargayia, Lebanon, moved to the US in the early 1900's, and lived in the vibrant and close-knit Highland Park area neighborhood to raise their five children, Abraham, Mike, Joe, Elizabeth (Asher), and their youngest, Sadie, born January 5, 1919.
She was pre-deceased by all her siblings; her beloved 10-year-older sister, Elizabeth, passed in the early 1990's.
As a 16-year-old walking down the block to the bus, the lady in the house near the end greeted Sadie daily with: "come meet my son." She finally did. And after much discussion with Elias, her dad, and wooing by the Indiana-born Joseph Lewis, at age 22, Sadie became a June-bride. Joe passed away in 1976 after nearly 35 years of marriage and the raising of two children, Nicholas Joseph and Nancy Marie (Lewis) Kotanian.
Husband Joe, a Ford Plant and former Civilian Conservation Corps engineer, moved Sadie and the family to North Hollywood California in 1957 where he worked for Rocketdyne, a division of North American Aviation, Rockwell, and the Boeing Company, until his death from complications of Diabetes.
Sadie moved from LA to an apartment in Boulder, Colorado with her daughter, Nancy and husband, Mike Kotanian, and her two grandchildren, Michael and Therese.
Son, Nick Lewis and two grandchildren, Jason (Carol) and Nicole (Lewis) Fowler, remained in California where Nick was employed by the Bendix Company in the then fledgling but rapidly expanding computer world.
Sadie then moved with the Kotanians to Kingman, Arizona and returned in 1996 to independent living near her son, Nick, and daughter-in-law, Connie (Littlefield) Lewis in Mill Creek, Washington.
A third bout of pneumonia forced her out of independent living at age 91 and her nearly eight-year tenure in her beloved two bedroom apartment in Everett's Holly Village Senior Living complex finally ended.
Sadie, a life-long smoker until she quit smoking more than 25 years ago, lived at Bethany Silver Lake from May until her death in October. Never one to "hang around with the old people" she was dubbed "Mayor" of Central wing and spent all of her time directing wheelchair "traffic" and kibitzing with staff in the hallways.
Sadie leaves behind five great-grandchildren.
Matriarch, hell-raiser (in a good way, she'd always say), devoted Catholic, and vibrant part of an extensive family, Sadie was the last living link to her era. She fought to make it to age 92 and will be missed by all.
Sadie will be buried next week with her husband in the San Fernando Mission Cemetery in California. Arrangements are being handled by Evergreen Funeral Home and Cemetery in Everett, Washington and Mission Hills Catholic Mortuary in California.
No flowers or other memorials are needed—good memories and prayers from those who knew her will continue to light her path.