Marcille Christine Yannekis

Marcille (Watts) Yannekis "Marcie," age 74, passed away peacefully at MVH on Dec 3 following a brief illness, surrounded by family. She was born in Detroit, Mi on April 12, 1948 to John and Mary Watts (Schaaf). She is survived by her sister Gloria (Peter) Carusone, brother John "Bruz"
Watts, and daughter Stacie (St. Chuck) Van Dam, grandchildren Amanda (Scott) Yannekis, Marissa (Chadd) Van Dam and Megan (Jacob) Van Dam, and her adorable great-grandchildren Harrison, Mila and Morgynn, nephew Christopher Bach and niece Candida (Bill) Stamp and great-nephew, Edison. She also had two bonus kids, Tom (Barry) Hardin and Ginger (Daniel) Lucas and their children, Christopher, Tristen and Veronica all of whom she loved as her own.

Marcie retired from General Motors after 30 years of service that started when she was just 18 years old, just after graduating from Meadowdale High School. While working at GM, she discovered her true passion was to help people suffering from mental illness and sought out a career as a psychiatric nurse. She attended Sinclair Community College, Wright State University, and Capitol University, eventually attaining her BSN. She spent many years working for various area hospitals and clinics. Unfortunately, Marcie suffered a medical incident that left her no longer able to work and forced her to retire from her most rewarding and meaningful position at Good Samaritan Homeless Clinic.

Years later, in 2014, Marcie was diagnosed with tongue/throat cancer and, due to the effects of radiation, she was no longer able to eat solid food without struggling. Although she had trouble walking, difficulty seeing, and a hard time hearing, she never felt disabled. While these obstacles could slow other people down, that was not the case for my mom. She never let any of her ailments interfere in her life and she continued to LIVE. She has traveled across the globe with her family and friends, spreading optimism and hope to everyone she met. She would always have a smile on her face, pretzels in her pockets, a Coke in her hand, and a pint of ice cream close by. She has been to every state in the union, partially thanks to the two of us dropping everything and driving cross country in order to check off the last two from her bucket list.

She belonged to several social groups and spent most of her time surrounded by her friends. She is currently a member of Beta Sigma Phi, Noble Circle, Wednesday Girls and The Wrinkle Butts. She enjoyed nothing more than a good game of Dominos, especially with her brother and sister. She also loved playing every card game, going to Bible study, reading, craft fairs, concerts, theater, thrifting for amazing deals, and her clothes closet. (Oh, how she loved her clothes!!!!)

Throughout my mom's life, she has had so many friends that I cannot even try to name them all. Some of her friends have been around longer than me, and she has some of the best friendships that I have ever seen and could only hope for in my lifetime. Without Deedy, Suzi, Terri, Gayle, Sandra, Sandy, Marilyn, Janine, Jenny, Sharon and all of the Judies, I don't know how we could have made it through these last 15 years. Although these friendships are amazing, they cannot compare to the relationships she has with her sister and brother and all of her grandchildren. She was someone that loved with her entire heart, and everyone around her felt loved when they were with her. She will be so missed, but her legacy will live forever.

In lieu of flowers, we are asking for donations that will go towards the food and care of Marcie's cat, Gabby. She absolutely adored that fuzzy feline and is forever grateful that one of her dear friends offered to take her in as one of her own. Just knowing that Gabby was going to be loved and looked after was a huge relief for Marcie. Thank you for your generosity.

https://checkout.square.site/merchant/MLGGJW87YG4JP/checkout/IDH6SSEVCOWO6W7OV3EGWPEF

Marcie's service will be livestreamed at the scheduled service time. Click here to view the service.