Celia Joyce Spady was born January 6, 1940, in Lyman, Wyoming to Kermit Bernard and Lottie Ida (Wolf) Karns. As a young girl, her family lived in different locations in Wyoming and Nebraska following her father’s job in the Federal Aviation Administration.
After graduating from North Kansas City High School in 1958, Celia married her high school sweetheart, Dennis, on September 21st at the United Methodist Church in Imperial. The couple began their life together at a small house in Imperial, and in 1963 bought the house across from Champion Lake, where they raised their children Cynthia, Mark, and Blaine.
We will remember Celia for the exemplary way she valued her faith, her family and her friendships. Favorite family activities included attending as many of her grandchildren’s sports, music, and theater events as possible. She was always ready to record them with a video camera in one hand and a camera in the other. Photography was Celia’s favorite hobby, and no family occasion was complete without at least one picture for her album.
Celia loved to travel. She and Dennis took their honeymoon in Yellowstone National Park and enjoyed skiing in Colorado. They went on mission trips to Mexico and also enjoyed touring the Holy Land with a church group. Later, they enjoyed visiting Arizona, Alaska, California, and Texas. When grandchildren came along, they instituted “grandchild trips” in which they took a new grandchild on a special mini-vacation each summer with just grandma and grandpa.
Celia served the United Methodist Church in Imperial as secretary for over 30 years. An active church member, she was a member of the bell choir and the United Methodist Women. She was always busy helping to make her church and community happy, peaceful and productive in whatever way she could.
Celia was welcomed into heaven by her parents, Kermit and Lottie; her husband of 56 years, Dennis; grandson Austin; sister-in-law Doris; brother-in-law Darwin and wife Elva.
She is survived by daughter Cynthia and husband Dennis Dahlkoetter of Grant; son Mark and wife Michelle of Imperial; son Blaine and wife Robin of Lincoln. Grandchildren: Leah and husband Shane Wissmann; Danielle Dahlkoetter; Alec and wife Nichole Spady; Paige and husband Trey Milner; Nolan, Sophie, Lucy, Olivia, Quinn, Eleanor, and Silas Spady. Great-grandchildren: Creedence and Truett Spady; Halsey Wissmann (and one little “Milner” on the way!); brothers: Richard (Dick) and wife Loretta of Kearney, MO; and John Karns of Imperial; brother-in-law Deloyce (Pete) and wife Becky Spady of Imperial; brother-in-law Ray Baldwin and wife Jennifer of Hudson, CO.
Celia’s memory is a keepsake for us all. While God has her in his arms, her family and friends will have her in their hearts forever.
Funeral Services will be held Friday, August 16, 2019, 10:30 A.M. at the First United Methodist Church of Imperial, Nebraska, with Rev. Bob Call, Pastor Kent Griffen and Pastor Melody Newman officiating. Interment will follow at Mount Hope Cemetery, Imperial.
Visitation will be held Thursday afternoon, August 15, 2019, 2:00 P.M.-6:00 P.M. at Liewer Funeral Home in Imperial.
A memorial has been suggested to the Spady Family to be designated in Celia’s memory.
Online condolences may be left at liewerfuneralhome.com
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