Obituary of Connie Stevens Cahill

Connie Stevens Cahill of Cemetery Road, New Lebanon NY passed away peacefully at home on Saturday May 29. She had fought a courageous battle against a lengthy illness. Her determination to persevere against overwhelming odds was an inspiration to all who knew her. Connie was born and grew up in Syracuse NY where she graduated from Liverpool High School. She then attended the State University of New York at Potsdam. Connie will be remembered dearly as a loving daughter, sister, wife, mother and friend. Connie had a life long love of children and ran a successful and nurturing day care out of her home for many years. She always thought of the children entrusted to her care as "her" children and treated them as such. She never failed to emphasize the importance of doing well in school to her charges. The children knew by heart her saying "if you can read you can do anything." Connie closed her day care center after many years and went to work for a local bank from which she retired in February of 2009. Connie filled her spare time with a multitude of pursuits. She enjoyed caring for her animals which included poodles of varoius sizes, exotic birds and fish. She had taken up genealogy as a hobby and followed her family tree to the middle ages in Europe. She was accomplished in many crafts including needlework, jewelry making and quilting. Her quilts were truly a labor of love and are cherished by those family and friends to whom they have been given. Connie is survived by her husband Bruce Cahill, mother Thelma Stevens and sisiter Mary Stevens. Her children are Lisa Cox of Syracuse NY, Steven Sawran of Boston MA, David Sawran of Buffalo NY, Matthew Cahill of Pittsfield MA, Daniel Sawran of Alamada CA and Rebecca Cahill of Keene, NH. She has three adored grandchildren; Jordan, Rachel and Zoey Cahill. Connie loved and was loved by all of them. The many lives she touched through the day care and her work at the bank have all been enhanced by the care and thoughtful kindness given by Connie to all she came in contact with. She will be sorely missed. A Memorial service for Connie will be held on Thursday, June 3, 2010 at 10 o'clock in the morning at The First Baptist Church of Lebanon Springs in Lebanon Springs, NY. Her family requests that in lieu of flowers donations be made in her memory to the American Cancer Society or to Hospice.