Colleen J Fallon

Colleen Jane Miller died January 15, 2024. She was just one day away from being reunited with her long-time hair stylist. It may sound like something small, but Colleen loved to talk and talk they did. The truth is she loved to talk to everyone - from her hair stylist to the cashier at Heinen’s. She made friends everywhere she went, and people responded to her cheery disposition, opening up and chatting about all the little (but, truly, big) things in life. She cherished her family and took pride in making a home where her boys, Bobby and David, and husband, Bob, were never without a good meal, oftentimes, coming from one of her hundreds of beloved cookbooks. Colleen was also the queen of treats, and you would be hard-pressed to find a Little Debbie’s or Hostess product that didn’t grace her shopping cart. And then there were all the holiday treats… loads of chocolate and gummies piled high in dishes throughout the house and always instantly replenished.

Colleen was born in Philadelphia to David and Agnes Miller. She attended and graduated from Little Flower Catholic High School. Soon after, she entered the convent. Ultimately, her gift of gab and love of dance made her reconsider her path. She left the convent and started work at Eaton Corporation where she met her eventual dance partner and husband, Bob. They were married on December 1, 1962 and danced together for sixty-one years until Bob’s recent death this past October. Bob twirled Colleen around the dance floor in square dancing competitions and at New Year’s Eve celebrations, including the time he twirled her so hard that Colleen found herself under a table and Bob couldn’t figure out where she went. They also danced on the high seas as they enjoyed cruising with friends. Colleen would white-knuckle it through flights (she had a life-long fear of flying) to be a part of these vacations that meant so much to them.

After years of hoping for children, Bob and Colleen were doubly blessed with Bobby in 1968 and David in 1969. The boys were never without a cheerleader; Colleen was a constant presence at all their games from school sports to beer-league pickup games even when the boys were in their 20s. While she loved her husband, boys, grandkids, and daughters-in-law, she had another family that she equally loved - all the animals she cared for whether in or outside her home. It was not unusual to see an opossum belly up to that night’s dinner scraps left lovingly on the back patio. Some of these animals made their way into the Fallon household. Morrie was one of these - a tabby cat who became like a child to Colleen and Bob. And, in Colleen fashion, he was just as spoiled. On the day that Colleen died, David checked on his parents’ house (where they had not lived for almost two years) and there on the front porch was a cat happily warming himself on the chaise lounge that Colleen had piled blankets upon for just such visitors.

Left to treasure her memory are her sons Robert (Debra) and David (Erin); and grandchildren Patrick, Jaret, Avery, Ava, and Sophia. She was preceded in death by her husband Bob. Visitation will be held on Tuesday, January 23 from 3-7 pm at Craciun Funeral Home located at 14925 Bagley Rd., Middleburg Heights, OH 44130. A mass will follow on January 24 at 10 am at Saint Bartholomew Catholic Church.