Obituary of Cornelia Dunn

Cornelia "Conni" Leonhard was born August 23, 1961 in Landau in der Pfalz, Germany. She was one of four children born from the union of the late Siegmund Wilhelm and Helga (Braun) Leonhard. Conni met the love of her life, American Soldier, Gary R. Dunn while he was stationed there with the United States Army. They were married in Landau on June 9, 1978. They became parents soon after to two children, Joshua and Yvonne. Conni moved to the United States in October 1981 residing in Clarksville, Tennessee for one year. Then moved to Monroe where daughter Nikole was born, finally residing in LaSalle, Michigan for many years. She was an amazingly strong woman and if you knew her, never tried to argue with her, it was always a complete waste of time. If you didn't know her she might have even scared you a little, or a lot. If you were her child, you stayed out of her kitchen and always ate everything on your plate. As with most German women, her patience was small but her heart was big. She loved cooking and baking for her family and for holidays. Her baked beans, deviled eggs, German potato salad, spaetzel and rouladen to name a few will be forever missed. She was a wonderful homemaker and always put her family needs above her own. She became an Oma (grandmother) at age 39 and her grandchildren became her pride and joy, her life to say the least. She loved teaching them German words and children's songs. Conni was a woman of many talents, especially cooking, sewing, and loving her family. She enjoyed traveling with her husband in his semi-truck and going for motorcycle rides with him. Conni went to work for Walmart in 2009, and then also for Monroe County Jail in 2012 as a cook. She juggled her two jobs and her family the best she could. She was fortunate to have one last trip to Germany in December 2015 to celebrate Christmas and New Year. Cornelia (Leonhard) Dunn, "Conni", age 54, of LaSalle went home to be with the Lord on February 9, 2016, at the University of Michigan Medical Center in Ann Arbor, Michigan, due to complications of a late diagnosis of stage IV colon cancer that metastasized to her liver. To Cherish her memory she leaves her husband of thirty-seven years: Gary; three children: Joshua Dunn of Erie, Yvonne (Patrick) Hammack of Luna Pier and Nikole (Tony) Kennedy of Powell, Tennessee; two brothers Ferdinand (Veronika) Leonhard of Landau/Godramstein, Germany, and Raymond (Ingrid) Leonhard of Landau Pfalz, Germany; her sister: Diana (Daniel) Soria of Wollmesheim, Germany; eight grandchildren: Daisy, Madison, Kyleigh, Devyn, Ava, Jack, Roland and Max; and several nieces and nephews. Friends may gather on Friday, February 12, 2016 from 2:00pm-8:00pm at Merkle Funeral Service, South Monroe; 14567 South Dixie Highway (734) 241-7070. A Celebration of Her Life will take place at 11:00am on Saturday, February 13, 2016 also at Merkle's with Reverend B.J. McDaniel officiating. Private burial will take place at a later date. A fundraiser to assist with medical and funeral services called, "Show Conni Some Love" will be held at Rivalry's Saloon, 7403 South Telegraph Road, Temperance, Michigan 48182 (734) 652-7873 on Sunday, February 21, 2016 from 2:00pm-7:00pm to raise money for medical expenses and funeral costs. Memorial donations are suggested to the family. Online guests may leave words of inspiration and comfort or share a photo by visiting www.merklefs.com, then Online Tributes page. The family is deeply grateful for the outpouring of love, prayers, and support in many heart-felt forms from too many people to name individually. Thank you to all personnel at U of M hospital for taking such great care of her and her family during their time of need. As a lover of angels and a firm believer in guardian angels, we wish her an eternal life of protecting family and friends until we meet again. She would say, "A face without freckles is like a sky without stars", and that they too were "angel kisses". She had many lovely freckles. Wife, Mother, Oma.