Hope Grunder Seese

Hope Grunder Seese
Hope Grunder Seese, 90, of Fairlawn, Ohio died on February 12, 2009 at The Justin T. Rogers Care Center and Hospice, Akron, Ohio.

She was born in Canton, Ohio on October 16, 1918 and was an Akron resident since 1957. A graduate of Margaret Morrison College, Hope enjoyed a challenging 40 year career with The May Department Stores Company first at The May Company in Cleveland and later at The M. O' Neil Company in Akron where she held many executive positions including Training Director and Director of Communications.

She was very active in many Akron community organizations. Among her favorites were the Women's Board of Stan Hywet Hall and Gardens, the Women's Committee of University of Akron, and the Akron Woman's City Club where she founded and presided over the very successful "Boutique" for many years. She was a past member of Portage Country Club.

Hope was preceded in death by husband, Robert Wayne Grunder; District Manager for the Ohio Department of Taxation in 1974, after 28 years of marriage and husband, A. Ray Seese, Jr., President of Seese and Sveda Construction Company in 1986. She is survived by brother-in-law, Jack Grunder and his wife Candy of Akron; nieces, Gloria Mc Danield and her husband Robert of Uniontown, Linda Pfalzgraf and her husband Paul of Canton, Pamela Sheiffer and her husband Arnold of New York City, Deborah Wince Smith and her husband Michael of McLean, Virginia, Elizabeth Wince of Chagrin Falls; nephew, Eugene Leno and his wife Pat of Montgomery, Texas and many grandnieces and grandnephews.

A Memorial Mass will be held 11 a.m. Saturday at The Village of St. Edward Chapel where friends may call one hour before services. Private inurnment at Rose Hill Burial Park. Memorials may be made to The Robert Maurice Grunder Scholarship Fund, 5 Oneck Rd., Westhampton Beach, N.Y. 11978 or The Village at St. Edward, 3125 Smith Rd., Akron, Ohio 44333.