To view the Recording of The Time of Reflection Service please click the link below:
Time of Reflection Service for Mrs. Panyard | Howe-Peterson YouTube

Millie Panyard, as most people knew her, fell asleep in death on May 19, 2021, at the age of 92 in the home that she loved in Melvindale, Michigan.  She resided there for 65 years.  Her loving family assisted her until her death.

Forty of those 65 years were shared with her beloved husband, John T. Panyard.  They built a life together and raised two daughters:  Mary (Roman) Pierzecki and Jacqueline (Mario) Nanos.

Millie deeply loved her grandchildren:  Monica (Christopher) Byrne, Rachel (Suresh) Wickremasinghe, Adam Pierzecki, Aaron Nanos and the late John (Yanni) Nanos.  She tried to spend time with them regularly and delighted in each one of them.

Millie had four great grandchildren from her first granddaughter, Monica Byrne:  Xavier, Christian, Damian and Kiera Byrne. When they were younger, she used to enjoy assisting in babysitting and reading children's books with them.

Millie delighted in hearing from her nieces, many living out of state, and enjoyed talking with her nephews from time to time as well.

She also leaves behind a very special person, a dear friend in her life, Odette Baker.

In the book of Acts 20:35, "…the Lord Jesus…himself said:  "There is more happiness in giving than there is in receiving."  Millie experienced that happiness many times as she gave of her time, energy and resources to help her family and friends.  She showed by her actions that she was carrying out the "…royal law according to the scripture, "You must love your neighbor as yourself…"  (James 2:8)

Eulogy for Mildred M. Panyard

A Celebration of a Life Well Lived

Written and Approved of by her Two Daughters

Under inspiration by God Moses wrote the 90 ^th- Psalm , which says in verse 10 : "The span of our life is 70 years, or 80 if one is especially strong…" The footnote for the word "strong" says "or because of special mightiness."

Mildred Panyard, called Millie by those that knew her, possessed that "special mightiness" living a healthy, productive life for 92 years.  On December 21, 2020,
Millie had a serious fall on the living room floor of her home that affected her heart and eventually lead to her recent death on Wednesday, May 19, 2021.

Mille was born on April 14, 1929, in Monessen, Pennsylvania, to John and Mary Zapora who were both of Polish origin.  Her father, John, was born in Europe, and her mother was born in the U.S.  She was a coal miner's daughter--just like the famous country singer, Loretta Lynn.  Millie would explain how her Dad had to buy his own dynamite in those days in order to keep his job in the coal mine.  That's why she had a strong conviction about the benefit of unions to protect workers.

Millie was the 6 ^th child out of the 9 children born to her parents over a 20 year span of time.  She was the youngest surviving daughter being predeceased by her sisters, Connie (who died at age 4 from a tragic accident), Violet, Bernice and Sophie and her brothers Eddie (who died at age 17 in WWII), Leon, Marty and Carey.

Millie's parents both worked very hard to provide for the needs of their family.  Following her parents' example, Millie also was hard working throughout her life but especially as a wife and mother in caring for and providing for her own family.

After her High School Graduation, Millie left Pennsylvania in 1947, following her older sister, Bernie, who came to Detroit, Michigan, with a friend named, Dotty.  After living with them, eventually she lived on her own, supporting herself in a secretarial capacity being able to take shorthand and working as a Dictaphone operator.

Millie met John T. Panyard at Holy Redeemer Catholic Church located in Detroit, Michigan.  On February 18 ^th , 1950, Millie and John were married in Pennsylvania, in Millie's hometown.  In 1956, they purchased a home in Melvindale, Michigan, where they built their life together and where Millie was still living after 65 years until her recent death.

Millie and John rejoiced at the birth of their two daughters, Mary Catherine in 1953 and Jacqueline Louise in 1961.  More joy came to them when their daughter, Mary Catherine, married Roman Pierzecki in 1976, and Jacqueline married Mario Nanos in 1987.

Three years after Jacqueline's marriage to Mario, Millie's husband John fell asleep in death in 1990 from lung cancer.  They had just celebrated their 40 ^th Wedding Anniversary one month earlier.  Millie remained a widow for the rest of her life—for 31 years, missing her beloved John.  Millie frequently reflected on what a good husband and father he was.  She said he died too young at age 62.

Millie has 5 grandchildren:  Monica (married to Christopher Byrne), Rachel (married to Suresh Wickremasinghe), Adam Pierzecki, Aaron Nanos and the late John (Yanni) Nanos.  As a devoted grandmother, Millie delighted in each grandchild as they grew up.  In 2004 Millie's 4 great grandchildren started to be born:  Xavier, Christian, Damian and Kiera Byrne.  Because of Millie's good health, she was able to enjoy assisting her daughter, Mary, while they both babysat for the great grandkids.  Millie was called GiGi by her great grandchildren, and she thoroughly enjoyed reading books to them.

Throughout her life Millie did secretarial work when needed to help support her family.  Her last position was as Executive Secretary to the Head of the Engineering Department at the former Allen Park Veterans Hospital.  She started out as a volunteer at that facility but eventually accepted the secretarial job.

John, her husband, called Millie, the "A" student.  He had chosen not only a beautiful young woman to be his bride but a smart one as well.  Their daughters have to agree that their mother was intelligent, resourceful, intuitive and also very generous with her time and resources when she saw a need to help someone.

Over the years Millie did other types of volunteer work including:

1. Joining a program whose objective was to teach adults to read.
2. Assisting two different teachers at Thomas Jefferson Elementary School over six years while her grandson, Adam, attended there. She helped in the Publishing Center at the school and eventually assisted an excellent teacher named, Jenny Kenny, for a number of years.  In an initial effort to help one troubled little girl in class by drawing a picture of her, it lead to her doing a portrait pencil drawing of every child in Ms. Kenny's class.  All the kids wanted to be in Ms. Kenny's class with Ms. Millie!  While working on the drawings of each student, Millie would say 'there's something beautifully unique about each and every child.' When completed, each drawing was sprayed to protect and preserve it.

Millie took college classes from time to time including senior art classes at Wayne County Community College for a number of years.  Her artistic gift was in drawing portraits, and she truly enjoyed using the medium called PASTELS to achieve it.  Four of her pastel drawings are displayed here at the funeral home today.

An elegant tall lady, Millie learned to sew many of her own clothes out of necessity at first.  She also sewed for other family members including her daughter, granddaughter and a sister-in-law.

Crocheting Afghans was another one of her talents.  She even taught her mother in Pennsylvania how to crochet on one of her yearly visits home.

Millie made hundreds and hundreds of chocolate chip and shortbread cookies over her lifetime.  Her cakes and especially her cheesecake were enjoyed by all.

Being an avid reader also made Millie an excellent Scrabble player in her later years.  At age 91 she would still be quite a challenge to overcome with her skill at the game and her well established vocabulary and spelling skills.

Millie was healthy and energetic for the majority of her life into her 80's.  Well into those later years, she even enjoyed using her snow blower during the winter months.  She continued to drive in her city of Melvindale into her 90 ^th year.

When Millie set her mind to learning a new skill or achieving a new goal, there was no stopping her.  She was quite an inspiration to others in that way.

Most important of all, Mildred Panyard LOVED her family , both immediate and extended.  She found great joy in remaining in contact with her many nieces,
a number of whom lived out of state, especially once her sisters and brothers
all died.  She also appreciated hearing from her nephews from time to time.
She thought of her close friends as family through the years and especially her friend, Odette, in her later years.   She appreciated her caring neighbors, both next door and especially those across the street from her, the Chabot's, who always showed concern for her and her home.

WHY IS LOVE SO IMPORTANT? God's greatest attribute is love, and we are all created in his image.  Therefore, at Colossians 3:14 God says, "…Love…is a perfect bond of union." Mildred LOVED and was LOVED by many people in her long life. That is why today this is a celebration of a life well lived for 92 years—that of Mildred M. Panyard.

Although Mildred is now sleeping in death, she has a beautiful hope for the future based on GOD'S PROMISES by means of the Kingdom that we're praying for in the 'Our Father' prayer.  Jesus himself made this promise in the Gospel of John chapter 5 verses 28-29 where He said, "Do not be amazed at this, for the hour is coming in which ALL those in the memorial tombs [graves] will hear his voice and come out, those who did good things to a resurrection of life…" According to the Scriptures, one day Mildred has the hope of being brought back to life young and healthy and given a second chance to live again on the earth but after it is restored to a beautiful Paradise.  God promises at Psalm 37:29, "The righteous will possess the earth and they will live forever on it." Let's hold that hope near and dear to our hearts for Millie Panyard and for all of our loved ones sleeping in death.

Visitation 3-8pm on Tuesday May 25, 2021 with a reflection service at 7pm at the funeral home. The service will be live streamed and a link will be posted on Tuesday. There will be a private burial at St. Hedwig Cemetery for immediate family only.