Martha Jeanette Clodfelter was born April 25,1939, to Samantha Clodfelter (deceased) and Mansfield Houston (deceased) in Lexington, North Carolina.  She grew up in Salisbury, North Carolina before moving to Cleveland, Ohio in 1962.

Martha had one brother, Robert Clodfelter (deceased). One daughter, Barbara Clodfelter (deceased) and two grandchildren, Ashanti (deceased) and Martell Clodfelter.

Martha’s only surviving grandchild Martell, was the focus of everything she did.  She was proud of ‘Marty’ and he loved his ‘Sue’, as family affectionately called her. She often bragged about his creative skills and uniqueness, especially his cosmetology abilities.

Martha loved life and loved being in love! She was married three times William Scott, (deceased), Ralph Hayes (deceased), Edgar Deal (deceased) and engaged to Dennis Porter (deceased).

Martha also loved to spend time with family. If her family needed her, she was always there. An avid traveler, one of her favorite trips involved going to family reunions in Columbus. She will be greatly missed by her many nephews, nieces and cousins throughout Ohio, North Carolina and many other states.

Martha has been a member of Greater Abyssinia Baptist Church for over 60 years. Her faith and her church were a very important part of her life. Reverend E.T. Caviness and Greater Abyssinia have been a part of her life since she arrived in Cleveland. He has married, buried and prayed for her and her family for decades. Martha was a member of the #1 Usher Board for decades. Regardless of where she was in her travels, Martha was going to make it back home for Usher Board anniversaries. Martha also joined the Praise Warriors. Her love of dancing and church were a perfect combination. She took great pride in inviting people to come see her praise dance.

Martha was a member of the International Free & Accepted Modern Masons & Order of Eastern Stars (OES) since 1972, holding many titles of high esteem. She loved her Eastern Star sisters and Masonic brothers. She joined other chapters and even started her own chapter “Daughter Clodfelter”.  She spent a lot of her time traveling with the OES youth groups and adults.  She sponsored many young people for youth trips and activities. Martha was extremely generous and kind, especially with children. She was always willing to help a child.

Martha would jump up to sing with any choir.  The choir members embraced and welcomed Martha as an important part of the chorus, although it was well-known to her and others that she was not the best singer- but she loved to sing and to sing loud.

Martha worked for over 30 years at the City of Cleveland Water Department as a Supervisor, retiring in 1998. She was not a person to sit down and ‘retire’.  For years, her chapter, “Daughter Clodfelter”, worked the Browns and Guardians games. She even took her workers to Buffalo to work the Buffalo Bills football game when they didn’t have enough local workers. She went back to work part-time working at Wendy’s and Walgreen. While working at Wendy’s, she hilariously would show up wearing a mink coat to assume her post at the drive-thru window. She was not going to be cold and was always going to look fabulous! Martha had fur coats in many styles, colors and for many different occasions.

Martha loved to sell things and make money. For decades she was an Avon salesperson, she met her first husband walking down the street selling Avon. Before her illness she was a salesperson of another cosmetic and beauty company. She participated in many fundraisers, often just buying the products upfront and selling them later at her own pace.

Martha and her sister/best friend, Kay Spates, met in 1966. Martha was a sister, aunt and godmother to Kay and her six kids. The bond between Kay and Martha was so strong, that many did not know they weren’t biological sisters until Martha’s death. Martha only had one child and but wanted the honor to name more, Kay allowed her to name her last three children. Martha was a fixture at every family gathering – be it a wedding, reunion, birthday, baby shower, funeral or graduation. She was always going to be there and always going to be early, patiently waiting.

Martha had a small biological family, but her associations, dedication and huge heart bestowed upon her a huge extended family. Martha had a continuous influx of family and friends checking on her while living in the Windsor Heights assisted living facility.  Even in her final months, she gained new family members. The staff at the facility affectionately called her GRANDMA. They wept and visited with her upon transitioning as if she was their biological grandma. There are many residents there of ‘grandma’ age, however, there was only one called grandma- Martha Jeanette “Sue” Clodfelter.

May she rest in peace and we all forever celebrate her life full of wonderful living.