Florence Kiessel Bowlby

Florence Kiessel Bowlby, age 96, passed away on December 24, 2024, surrounded by family in the peaceful care of Angela Hospice Center in Livonia, MI. Born in Detroit on December 7, 1928, to Carl and Viola (nee Reicha) Kiessel, Florence moved with her family in 1931 to a farmhouse outside Lake Leelanau, MI, and grew up on a working farm. As the eldest of 5 children and the eldest grandchild, Florence often cared for her many younger cousins which led to her desire to become a nurse. Learning in a one-room schoolhouse, Florence graduated high school early, and while waiting to enter nursing school, worked at the State Hospital in Traverse City caring for mentally ill patients. After becoming a Registered Nurse in Detroit, she met the love of her life, James R. Bowlby, an orderly attending Wayne State Medical School. Florence and Jim were married on December 29, 1951, at St. Wenceslaus Church in Gills Pier, MI.

Their family grew quickly with the arrival of two sons within just over two years. When Jim was sent to Germany as a doctor in the Army Medical Corp in 1955, Florence packed up and traveled alone with two toddlers to join him in Kitzingen where they remained until the end of 1956, returning only a month before the arrival of their third son. Florence always wanted a large family and added two more boys to their brood by 1960, then finally a daughter in 1962, just two days after moving their family to Livonia, MI.

Faith and family were the two most important things to Florence, and they guided her throughout the course of her life. Though she became a busy homemaker, she always found time to be involved in her children’s schools and to help the new neighborhood parish get established and grow. When she wasn’t cooking meals for 8, washing and ironing clothes, baking desserts and cookies, tending to cuts and scrapes, or any of the other myriad household needs, Florence would be found at PTA meetings, children’s sporting events, and volunteering at the local church. In her “spare” time, Florence enjoyed gardening, having bridge club, traveling, and completing jigsaw puzzles. As the children grew and started leaving home to begin their lives, Florence found time to return to employment as the nurse at Jim’s medical office. She often quipped that she was the highest-paid nurse, earning half of what the doctor made.

By the time she was widowed in 1990, Florence had turned to caring for her grandchildren. She always loved the little ones, the ones who were sick, the ones who needed the most care and love. Having purchased the farmhouse she grew up in, Florence often returned to the Lake Leelanau area to spend time in her retirement years with siblings, cousins, nieces, and nephews. She enjoyed genealogy and traveled in search of ancestral information. She continued hosting holidays, including her annual family New Year’s Eve tradition into her eighties before starting to slow down.

Though she never minded living alone, following an electrical fire in her house, Florence moved into the home of her eldest son and daughter-in-law where she stayed for 8-1/2 years. Age-related decline necessitated more focused nursing care, so Florence moved back home and was cared for by a daughter-in-law, a nurse. Unfortunately, injuries sustained in a fall shortly before Thanksgiving were devastating. She fought hard and celebrated her 96th birthday just before her final decline. Florence entered hospice care and was bestowed a Florence Nightingale Tribute for her years of nursing. She later passed in peace and comfort surrounded by family.

Florence is survived by her children: Mark (Nancy) Bowlby, Neil (Carrie Hiser) Bowlby, John Bowlby, Brian (Lisa) Bowlby, and Kathleen (Thomas) Harmon. She is also survived by her daughter-in-law Bobbi Ann Chilson and Lynn Jacobs, partner of John. Florence was loved and survived by her Grandchildren: Jason Bowlby, Michael (Tanya) Bowlby, Patrick Bowlby, Sarah Bowlby, Katherine (Samuel) Dyer, James Bowlby, Edward Harmon, Eric Harmon, and Shannon Harmon. Great Grandchildren Johnny Bowlby, Emily Bowlby, Elizabeth Dyer, and Wesley Bowlby. Florence is also survived by her in-laws, Gale Kiessel, and Richard and Gwen Bowlby, and many beloved nieces and nephews.

Florence was preceded in death by her parents, Carl and Viola Kiessel; her husband, James R. Bowlby M.D.; brother-in-law, Ed Bowlby; son, David E. Bowlby; daughter-in-law, Cynthia Katzman; grandson, David R. Bowlby; her siblings, Carl N. and Geraldine (Beckwith) Kiessel, Ruth and Harley Earl, Joanne, and Richard Anderson, and Daniel Kiessel; and nieces, Juli (Kiessel) Bemis and Jeanne (Anderson) Bruner; grand-nephew A.J. Trustey; grand-niece Anna Trustey, and their father, Joseph Trustey.

A visitation will be held Sunday, December 29, from 4:00-8:00pm at Harry J Will Funeral Home, 37000 Six Mile Rd, Livonia, MI 48152, with a Rosary service at 7:00pm. An in state will be held Monday, December 30, at 9:30am at St Mary of Redford Catholic Church, 16098 Grand River Ave, Detroit, MI 48227, followed by a funeral mass at 10:00am. She will be laid to rest at Holy Sepulchre Catholic Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers, contributions in Florence’s memory may be directed to Angela Hospice or the Capuchin Soup Kitchen.