TIMOTHY SEAN SULLIVAN

TIMOTHY SEAN SULLIVAN of Bay Village, Ohio, died peacefully on June 7, 2025, surrounded by family, after 5 and ½ months of heroic struggles from complications due to a sudden and complex neurological illness. He was 63 years old. Sean is survived by his beloved wife of 35 years, Mary (nee Conway), and their children Grace (betrothed to Justin Sutton), Virginia (betrothed to William Hickey) and Rose Sullivan; and his siblings Frank (Barbara nee O’Rourke), Tom Jr. (Mary nee Frain), Daniel (Julie nee Fate), Kathleen (Blaise Dupuy) and Julie Sullivan. Grace, Virginia, and Rose have been instrumental in Sean’s care over these excruciating months, upending their lives to look after their beloved father. Sean was a favorite uncle to 40 nieces and nephews and even more grand nieces and nephews.

Sean was known as Captain Fun — wherever he went, good times followed. He was a lover of oceans and marine life, of horses and rolling hills, of Doberman dogs, of fishing and deer hunting, of live music, especially the blues, of food and fine wine, and above all, he was a lover of his wife and queen, Mary. Together, they had nearly 40 years of laughter, joy, and adventure. 

Sean was born January 31, 1962, the second of six children to Thomas and Sandra Sullivan. Of all the Sullivan children, Sean was the true entrepreneur. He began his work career at age 12, delivering the Cleveland Press from his bike basket. He later worked for two summers with thoroughbred horses at Brunswick Farms, a job that solidified his love for horses and foreshadowed his future in horse breeding and racing.  In 1980, at the age of 16, he started his first business, “Sully Sealers,” sealing driveways and parking lots during summer months. By 1982, he had 12 employees.   

Sean attended West Virginia Wesleyan College, after four years at the Foreman School in Litchfield, Connecticut. Two years into his undergraduate adventures, Sean took a college-sponsored trip that would change his life trajectory— a month of diving to survey coral reefs off the Dry Tortugas Islands. After that experience in January 1982, Sean made plans to transfer to the University of North Carolina Wilmington (UNC by the Sea) to pursue his love of the marine world. Sean was an avid fisherman and met many local anglers in Wilmington, where he would start another business —G&S Seafood,whose logo was “From Our Docks to Your Shops: The Freshest Seafood in Town.” Sean rented refrigerated trucks to drive fresh, never frozen, fish from North Carolina to Ohio to wholesale to fine restaurants and supermarkets. This company evolved into Navillus Seafood, founded in 1986, which opened its first retail/wholesale counter at a brick-and-mortar shop in Rocky River. Navillus Seafood’s motto was true to Sean’s innate honesty: “Good Seafood isn’t cheap. Cheap Seafood isn’t good.”

During the early years of Navillus, Sean met and married Mary Conway, the love of his life, in 1990. He often recalled that he knew Mary was the one the moment he first laid eyes on his Irish Queen. With his charismatic salesmanship, he persuaded her to join him on a date. After some playful cajoling, she agreed, and that moment marked the beginning of a decades-long adventure filled with laughter, romance, travel, and the warmth of cherished family and friends. Together, Sean and Mary welcomed three beautiful daughters into their lives: Grace, Ginny, and Rose. Sean took immense pride in his role as a dedicated "girl dad" and loved to brag about his daughters whenever he had the chance.

From a refrigerated truck to a storefront in Rocky River, Navillus moved to a wholesale facility on West 52 Street in Cleveland and would eventually merge with Euro USA in 1997, an importer and distributor of specialty fine foods, seafood and wine. 

Sean shared his entrepreneurial know-how and expertise through his dedicated service to Urban Community School, supporting the education of economically disadvantaged children on Cleveland’s near Westside. He also supported The Sullivan Scholars Fund at The Cleveland Foundation and BAYarts, a community arts center located in Bay Village. 

In 2013, Sean purchased Winterwood Farm in Bellville, Ohio, fulfilling a lifelong dream of owning his own farm. Working with farm manager Mark Adams, Sean built Winterwood into a premier business for standard-bred breeding, producing champion trotter racehorses. Sean loved nothing more than sharing the beauty of this very special place with his extensive group of family and friends. 

Sean Sullivan left us too soon, and will be sorely missed. Whenever we celebrate the beauty of nature, cast a line into the water, or enjoy a good meal in fine company, Sean will be there. 

There will be a wake on Sunday, June 15, 2025 from 1 to 5 p.m. at Chambers Funeral Home, 29150 Lorain Road, North Olmsted). The funeral will be held at 11:30 a.m., Monday, June 16, 2025 at St. Angela Merici Church, 20970 Lorain Road, Fairview Park. PLEASE MEET AT CHURCH. (Mass will be livestreamed at:  https://www.youtube.com/@st.angelamericiparish-fair782/videos) In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in Sean’s memory to Urban Community School, https://urbancommunityschool.org/donate  The Sullivan Scholars Fund of the Cleveland Foundation, http://sullivanscholars.com/mission.html  and BAYarts.  https://bayarts.net/donate/