Phyllis Darlene McCleese

Phyllis Darlene McCleese, 65, of Ewing, NJ was born on December 20, 1959, to Phillip and Willie Ruth Woolfolk in Neptune, NJ.
Phyllis "Darlene" attended Trenton Central High School graduating in 1978. She also attended Mercer County Community College in the early 1980s, receiving an Associate degree in Applied Science with a focus in Dental Assisting. Once she started her family, that became her priority and later she attended and graduated from Gwynedd Mercy University receiving a bachelor's degree with honors in Business Administration with a concentration in Health Care Administration at the tender age of 61.
She married her life partner of 51 years, Shelbert "Shep" McCleese, on May 21, 1983, and they had two beautiful daughters, Retoneya McCleese Champion and Shelbrea McCleese.
She began her career as a Dental Assistant for Henry J Austin Health Center in Trenton, NJ. As her career grew, she worked as a Substitute Teacher for Trenton public schools, Marketing Assistant at Kepner Trego, in Princeton, NJ, an Office Manager/ Dental Assistant for Affordable Dentures in Ewing, NJ, Realtor for Long and Foster in Princeton Junction, NJ, and lastly, she retired as the Director of Practice Management for Virtua in Camden, NJ in 2017.
Phyllis was a faith-filled woman of God and a boss. She was an avid reader, shopper, gardener, researcher, and most of all loved to love on her family. She and her husband, Shep, would take annual trips to North Carolina to visit family, friends, and attend the annual Scuppernong River Festival in Columbia, NC. She also loved taking family trips to Virginia Beach, Virginia, which became a tradition well into the time she had grandchildren. These visits also incorporated seeing family in the DMV area. Phyllis was particular about her attire and she loved getting dressed up. She enjoyed eating seafood and steak and attending and hosting family gatherings, making others happy was her thing.
Her mom taught her how to be a supportive big sister and little sister to her big brother a.k.a. "twin" Phillip "Darnell" and she did just that. If someone was bothering any one of her siblings, she was there to protect and defend. If anyone of her siblings needed advice or just a listening ear, she was always there. The countless stories that she would share with her brothers and sisters always led to a trip down memory lane that often ended in robust belly laughs. The "Magnificent 7" were incredibly close and walked with each other through every season of life. There was nothing they wouldn't do for each other. She and her sisters were solid in the way they spent time together, shared gifts, and loved one another until the end.
Phyllis was a phenomenal mother to both of her girls. She ensured that her daughter, Retoneya "Dell", and son-in love, Chris, were taken care of after all their pregnancies. Her way of showing love and guidance was by spending the night and cooking and cleaning for them – so much so, that they didn't want her to leave. The love that she showed was distributed equally as she would regularly visit Shelbrea "Brea" and her fur baby, Synamon, at their house. Even after they said their farewells after a visit, they would spend countless moments talking to each other all day every day, over the phone. When Phyllis called, she would say, "Hi mommy's sweet baby girl" to always make sure that she was good.
Phyllis' beloved grandchildren enjoyed similar special treatment. She was supportive of each of them at each stage of their lives. She made sure to attend as many of Dinari's football and basketball games, Faith's soccer games and piano recitals, and both of their school plays, grandparent days, and Honor Roll ceremonies. As for she and Azaria, they had their own special bond doing each other's makeup, playing games, and singing songs. Phyllis would go to any length to ensure that her grandchildren were happy and felt loved.
She was preceded in death by her parents, Phillip and Willie Ruth Woolfolk; nephews, Tamar Woolfolk and Andre McClees; brothers-in-love, Alford McClees, Stanley McCleese, and Raymond McCleese; and sister-in-love, Sheila McClees.
Phyllis is survived by her loving spouse, Shelbert "Shep" McCleese; children, Retoneya "Dell" McCleese Champion (Chris) and Shelbrea "Brea" McCleese; godson, Nicholas J. Cannon; grandchildren, Allena Monet Champion, Dinari Champion, Faith Champion, and Azaria Champion; fur grandbaby, Synamon McCleese; siblings, Phillip D. Woolfolk (Phyllis), Carol Woolfolk, Richard Woolfolk (Elvira), Paul Woolfolk (Nina), Kenya Woolfolk, and Ida Woolfolk; nieces, Victoria Woolfolk, Vanessa Woolfolk, Tierra Edwards, Shawnda Woolfolk (Antoine), Tasha Woolfolk, Anasia Woolfolk, Shanelle Woolfolk, Tamika Clemons (Keturah), Quianna Woolfolk, Akoya Harris, Ericka Collins, Temekia McClees, and Kimberly McClees; nephews, Richard Woolfolk (Trina), Paulie Woolfolk, Gary Lawery, Kwamaine Harris, Denis Floyd (Latanya), Tony Floyd, Keith Floyd, Shelbert J. McClees (Jimmika), Kendrick McClees, Aaron McClees, and Adrian McClees; sisters-in-love, Evangeline "Van" Ashe, Rosa "Rose" Dildy, Brenda McClees, Mary McClees-Baker, and Shirley McClees; brothers-in-love, Allen McClees and Ernest "Jack" McClees; sister-cousins, Liz McNair, Alisha Young, and Freda Gregory; special godfriends, Ms. Pearlie Smith and family, Sandra Cannon, Jeanette Reese, Donna "Duck" Lowe, Cheryl "Bird" Portee, Lafayette and Brenda Mercer and family, Cynthia Barry, Tony Rosica and family, Jacqui Sine, Joan Gray, Sheila Smith, Mabel Serrano, and Sheila Feinbaum; and a host of loving great nieces and nephews, cousins, and friends whom she absolutely adored.