Elizabeth A Blakely "Daki"

Elizabeth Ann Blakely, 93, best known as Daki, passed away peacefully and beautifully on March 17, St Patrick's Day, surrounded by loved ones in her longtime family home.



Daki was born in Midland, PA, 1928 on Valentine's Day, foreshadowing how much she would be loved. The daughter of German and Irish immigrants, Joseph and Claire Lutz, She was the sibling of Therese and Tony. Daki's childhood was spent in an eccentric environment – roaming the vast expanses of "Retreat," an adult psychiatric facility where her mother, aunts, and uncles worked and lived.



Always the socialite, Daki gathered many happy, colorful, and entertaining stories with the employees and patients of Retreat. Roller skating through mysterious underground tunnels, ice skating the river, to climbing the "mountain" to get into town, and the hilarious antics of both doctors and patients whom she got to know while working as a waitress in the facility. Her life there was a rich one.



An exceptional student, Daki skipped ahead in school, graduated early from Nanticoke High, and struck out with close friends to live in Philadelphia where she entered the workforce as a teller. However, the draw of the big city would not hold her for long. Back in Nanticoke, Daki's sister Therese, set her up on a blind date. Daki met Jack, and love was no longer blind – they were married in the blizzard of 1950, December 30th, with Therese and close friends as witnesses. The couple returned to Nanticoke and began a family.



Jack, a service member, left the Army and graduated from Syracuse University. The couple made the move to Rotterdam, NY along with the first three of their five children where Jack and Daki put a down payment on what would become not just their house, but a generational home. 4 Newell Road sits on a dead end street, overlooking General Electric and the City of Schenectady. It has a U-shaped driveway, a massive conifer (left to thrive as Jack cleared the land) and a sensational view of the sunrise. They would spend the rest of their lives here, raising two generations of children, making so many neighborhood friends and indelible memories. In the evening you would hear Mothers from down and across the way, calling out for kids to get back home for dinner. As dusk fell on late summer nights, sure enough, back out the kids would go, and often you would find parents co-mingling across gently manicured yards. Best-of-times days, captured with fiery reds and autumn yellows on canvas, moments too alive to recognize until they had passed. The famous yard at 4 Newell was host to many, many gatherings, picnics, and celebrations. Parties, fourth of July BBQs, and not to mention Ghost Ghost, Kick the Can, and baseball games. Daki's daughter Lisa was married here, and 3 decades later, her daughter Shelby celebrated her own wedding festivities in the same yard.



A mother of 5, Daki still worked various jobs while the kids were growing. In the evenings and on weekends, she worked for Central Market, and Schenectady Trust, enjoying friendships with customers and employees alike. Once her kids were school-age, she started full time at Schenectady Trust.



After retirement, Daki and Jack enjoyed some traveling, from Europe to a few drives cross country. Even in retirement, she was always looking to make her mark on the world; Daki went back to work as a teaching aide, eventually working side-by-side with her now established eldest daughter’s class for the deaf and hard of hearing. Daki also worked for several years at Schalmont Middle School where she met some of her closest friends.



When Grandchildren started to arrive, Daki ended her time at school to start her most enjoyable, important and rewarding career...being the most caring, loving grandmother ever made.



Daki had 12 grandchildren altogether, all of whom were fairly local. None so much as Elizabeth, Christian, and Connor, triplets who grew up on the pleasant acre at 4 Newell Rd. Daki raised the triplets with her daughter Michele, a second foray into the fun, and immense frustration of parenting! Along with the triplets, Daki hosted her 9 other grandchildren frequently; any long weekend promised a team of rambunctious Blakelys roaming the lawn, climbing trees, riding the mower with Jack (Pop-pop), and standing at Gramma's (Daki's) heels in the kitchen, waiting for something sweet.



Jack passed away in the summer of 1994, and it was her wide and ever-present family that helped Daki continue on without her husband of 45 years.



She raised various cats and dogs, whom she loved and spoiled, and was kind enough to share the house with a dove, various hamsters, and lizards, whom she had less love for, but loved none-the-less. It is something of a family joke - how many times Daki was at the hospital or vet with a kid or pet… the only places that she may have visited more were Price Chopper and Boscia’s , where she knew and appreciated everyone who worked there, earning the nickname "ma" thanks to her consistent character and patronage.



A couple of notes: You did not call Daki during world News Tonight with David Muir! Or Jeopardy (unless it was an emergency). You could call during Wheel of Fortune (but only if it was almost an emergency.) She enjoyed crossword puzzles, and could finish them in record time.



Her most cherished pastime was reading. You always knew that a gift card to any book store was the perfect gift, and Daki was always most content curled up on the couch with a book. She loved to try out new recipes and we all were fortunate for her love of cooking and baking. The rest of her time consisted of afternoons sitting out on the hill, summer dinners out at the picnic table, Newell Road get-togethers with friends and kids, Schonowee Firehouse dinners, dances, bbqs and celebrations.



Daki had an abundance of joy and friendship in life, and particularly so in the pocket of the neighborhood around Newell Rd. Daki loved sitting out on the swing with Michele in the evening, enjoying a beer or her Bully Hill "Love My Goat" wine (who's stock prices will surely drop now) with Michele, Lisa, Barb, and occasionally her boys, Jack and Chris, chatting, and inviting neighbors in for a glass of wine, gossip, and good conversation.



Daki was predeceased by her husband Jack, and her brother Tony. She is survived by her sister Therese. She has left behind, to find a suitable host for Jeopardy, her daughters Michele, Lisa (Stewart Burton), Barb (Dan Taylor); sons Jack (Marsha Cutis), Chris (Judy); grandchildren Tara, Shane, Meredith, Shelby, Michael, Stephanie, Matthew, Harry, Elizabeth, Connor, Christian, and Jack, and great grandchildren Nathan, Henry, Isaac, Jack, Spencer, Bryon and Nolan.



The last years of Daki's life were affected immeasurably by the efforts of her Daughters, Michele, Lisa, and Barbara, along with her resident handyman, Dan Taylor, and three women who were so kind, helpful and indispensable to her happiness and well-being:



Savannah, Acacia, and Tammy. There is a special place in Daki's heart for all of you.



Blessings to Dr. Joseph Fusella and staff, nurses Craig and Bonnie, and thank you very much to Kingsway Homecare Service, Broadway Home Care, Landmark, and The Community Hospice and all of the staff at these agencies. Our gratitude to all of you knows no bounds. You are heroes not just to us, but to so many.



In Lieu of flowers, please make donations to Macular Degeneration Research at 22512 Gateway Center Drive Clarksburg, MD 20871 or The Community Hospice at 445 New Karner Rd. Albany, NY 12205.