Melanie Mae Stewart, 73, of both Stockton Springs, Maine, and Palmyra, Va., passed away on the afternoon of July 2, 2019. She was born to the late Wesley Jacob Steesy and Marcella Mae Steesy on June 28, 1946.
As the daughter of a naval officer, young Melanie called many cities her home – including San Diego, Calif.; Adak, Alaska; and Norfolk, Va. – before settling in Silver Spring, Md., in 1955 with her parents and two older brothers, Walter and Riley Steesy. A graduate of the University of Maryland, Melanie was a special education teacher for several years. In 1974, she made the life-changing career move to full-time motherhood and spent the next 22 years as CEO of her household, raising her three children. Following in her father’s entrepreneurial footsteps, she took over his advertising business for a number of years, and even launched her own wedding invitation business, An Elegant Invite, that she ran from her home office. She was an avid volunteer in school PTAs, gardening clubs, her women’s club and her church.
In 1989, she married the love of her life, Wilson “Bill” Stewart, and they had 30 wonderful years together. For 23 years they split their time between Maine and Maryland. In 2012, Melanie and Bill traded Maryland for Virginia, finding a lovely home and neighborhood in Lake Monticello. Here she become extremely involved in their local Methodist church, founded a number of book clubs and became active in her history and wine clubs. She fell in love with the community and the rich history of the Charlottesville area.
Melanie enjoyed gardening, swimming, reading and even writing – authoring a number of nature and adventure books for each of her seven grandchildren.
Melanie is survived by her husband, Bill, her three children and her seven grandchildren, whom she loved traveling to visit for weeks at a time each year.
- Kenneth Rogers Clore II, his wife Erika, and their children Kenneth (12) and Landon (10);
- Erik Riley Clore, his wife Lisa, and their children Emme (8) and Sam (5); and
- Melinda Mae Staab, her husband Steve, and their children Madeline Mae (12), Gabriella (11) and Jack (7).
In lieu of flowers, donations would be gratefully accepted to Salem United Methodist Church, 840 Salem Church Rd, Palmyra, Va., 22963.