Eleanor M. Sikkila

Eleanor Sikkila passed away peacefully in Lyman, South Carolina, on November 11, 2024. She loved the Lord and placed her hope and trust in Jesus as the author and finisher of her faith.

She was born in Blackwell, Wisconsin, September 14, 1930, to the late Alex and Josephine (Brefczynski) Majeski. At the age of the five she moved with her parents to Pequamming, Michigan, where her father, Alex, worked at the Ford sawmill. Eleanor loved to reminisce about those "Pequamming Days". She claimed it was the best part of her childhood; even being the Era of the Great Depression she said, "people lived by The Golden Rule and that's what made it so good".

In 1940, at the age of ten, Eleanor moved to Aura, Michigan, with her family and she attended school in L'Anse, Michigan.

At the age of nineteen, she went to work as a waitress at the Nite Owl Café in L'Anse. It was there that a young man named Edwin Sikkila first noticed her and persisted until she agreed to date him. He won her over and they were married on August 12, 1950.

They moved to Covington, Michigan, and together they had four children. In 1961, Edwin passed away and she became a widow at the age of twenty-nine.

Eleanor had a firm faith and Godly wisdom that enabled her to raise her four children on her own. Or as she would often say, "I didn't do it alone...God was always with me". Scarcely a Sunday went by when she would not gather her children in the living room and read to them from the Bible - this was a ritual she insisted on because she believed that God's Word is a Living Word, which would not return void. She was a member of the Apostolic Lutheran Church in Watton, Michigan, where she served for many years as a Sunday School teacher and Sunday School Superintendent. She loved planning and overseeing the Sunday School Christmas programs and Vacation Bible School program during the summer. She was always willing to go out of her way to pick up any child that did not have a ride to Sunday School. Sometimes she made several trips on a Sunday morning. Eleanor had a servant's heart, and she did indeed live by "The Golden Rule".

After her children left home, she got a job at Baraga County Memorial Hospital in the Dietary Department, where she worked for twenty years. At retirement, she was presented with a plaque commending her for never missing a day of work or being late in all those years.

At the age of ninety, Eleanor moved to Ashlan Village Assisted Living in Lyman, South Carolina, to be near her children.

She is preceded in death by her husband, Edwin Sikkila; her parents, Alex and Josephine Majeski; siblings, Harry Majeski, Edward Majeski, Leo Majeski, Eugene Majeski, Joseph Majeski, Alex Majeski, Jr. and Dorothy Fleuchaus; grandsons, Randy and Damon Sikkila, and son-in-law, Paul (Sharon) Seppala.

Eleanor was cherished and will be greatly missed by her four children, David (Brenda) Sikkila of New Ipswich, New Hampshire, Paul (Jeanne) Sikkila, of Greer, South Carolina, Christine (Don) Levijoki of Taylors, South Carolina, Sharon Seppala, of Seguin, Texas; thirty-six grandchildren; one step-granddaughter, one hundred forty-five great-grandchildren; thirteen step-great grandchildren; eleven great great-grandchildren; and many nieces; nephews and friends.

A funeral service will be held 3:00 p.m. Monday, November 18, 2024; at Greer Apostolic Lutheran Church conducted by Pastor Scott Seppala. Burial will be in Covington Township Cemetery, Covington, Michigan, at a later date under the direction of Jacobson Funeral Home.

A visitation will be held 1:30 - 2:45 p.m. Monday, November 18, 2024, prior to the service.

The family wishes to extend their heartfelt thanks to the competent and caring staff at Ashlan Village Assisting Living facility for all that you have done for our mother. From the day she walked through the days until the day she left, your professionalism, your kindness and your compassion made a difference in her life and ours. Words cannot express our gratitude! We are forever grateful for the quality of care she received.

Our heartfelt thank you to Agape Hospice for your kind and compassionate care as you tended to our mother's needs and ours during an exceedingly difficult time.

Online condolences may be made at www.thewoodmortuary.com or www.jacobsonfuneralhome.com.