Olimpia Warsaw

Olimpia Ungurean Warsaw, 69 years old, passed away peacefully on November 9, 2020. She was the daughter of the late Lidia and Moise Ungurean. Olimpia was also the beloved wife of Ronald L Warsaw, loving mother of Claudiu L Coltea (Michael A Hatty), twin sister of the late Otilia (Basil) Bell, sister of Doina (Ghita) Balean, and dear aunt to Florin (Melissa) Surlea, Chris (Gabi) Balean, and John D Muntean. She was also a deeply proud and loving pet mom to her many furry babies throughout her life including Timmy, Tiffany, Chloe, Bailey, Kahlua, Rico, Chico and recently Olivia and Nelli. She also adored her furry grandkids Cybil and Hunter. She also leaves behind countless cousins and friends who counted Olimpia as an honorary family member because her love and kindness were so abundant, and her goodness so big. Olimpia was born in Moldova Noua, Romania. Olympia’s father passed when she was 4 years of age, she then often took on the role of nurturer and caretaker for her sisters and even her mother, which came to define whom she would be throughout her life. I, her son, am writing this and attempting to describe how wonderful, loving, and amazing my mother was and is, is like trying to describe how warm the sun is or how love feels. When I asked our family and friends to describe her, the overwhelming response was “Everyone loved your mother! Everyone!” Her sisters spoke about how she was the most protective person they knew. Her mother spoke of how she was the most adoring person she knew. Her friends said she was the most fun one when you wanted to have a laugh and the one you could count on most to comfort you in times of need. Always early to church on Sunday as a teenager, she was the one all the young church boys wanted to date with her beautiful eyes, kind soul, big hugs, and a smile that pierced everyone’s heart. As a mother, no one compared to Olimpia. She was the kind of mom a child prays and hopes for, and the quintessence of complete and selfless love and sacrifice for her child. When my mother and I immigrated to the United States, we came with many hopes and dreams, and only a few dollars. I never knew we were financially poor, because Olimpia made every day feel rich. For many years, we did not have a car, so my mother would carry me on her back as we went sightseeing and enjoyed time together on weekends – to museums, libraries, concerts, church, the zoo, and helping others in need. During the week, my mother would spend hours teaching me, while teaching herself, English. She would sell the few precious valuables she had just to buy me my favorite white chocolate elephants – one a day, every day, for years. But beyond that, my mother taught me kindness, selflessness, and perseverance. Growing up in Detroit, we lived in a multi-cultural, multiethnic community. She would help me see how beautiful and amazing “different” was – from others who did not look like us, to those who did not think or believe as we did. She taught me that diversity in its many forms was God’s way of painting the world to be a richer, more colorful, and more loving place. She did not see nor categorize people by race, gender, religion, sexual orientation, or class. She saw people as humans, creations of god, all of whom sought to be heard and to be loved. And our role and responsibility to each other was simply to spread that love and kindness with the unique gifts each of us is given, no matter what they were, and to make an impact. From my first memories of life, until the night she passed away, she ended every conversation with one phrase: “Go make a difference in this world.” That is what my mother taught me. That is love. As a citizen of the world, Olimpia broke barriers and boundaries that women of her time and her class were not supposed to reach. She was the first in her family to earn not just one, but two college degrees. She taught herself English, learned to survive, always worked multiple jobs, and made a home that was filled with joy, love, nurturing, and understanding. Even in the most difficult of times, Olimpia smiled through it, and knew there was always hope to be found, even in the unseen. She became a nurse, and then a leader in her field helping others find the joy in giving and serving others. She was so proud of becoming a nurse, not because of the stature it brought but because of the platform it gave her to help others in need. This is who she was and is to the world. Her husband often speaks of her boundless love that was so big and beautiful, it was even frustrating at times. After retiring from nursing, her desire to give and love did not stop. She would bring boxes of chocolates to her doctors, offer delivery drivers Romanian knick knacks from her home as a token of her appreciation if she did not have cash, and even demanded her husband feed the skunks and racoons around their yard so they would not go hungry. There are countless moments throughout her life where Olimpia went to any means necessary to make sure all creatures, humans and otherwise, felt loved, nurtured, and safe. Many of you will never know Olimpia, or you may have only known her during a portion of her life. But she is a person that embodied love, strength of character, and an unapologetic defiance to stand up for what was right and what was good. Although on Earth only 69 years, her goodness and love for kindness, family, friends, and her child will live on forever through all those she empowered, loved, and nurtured during her time with us. I have not met a better, stronger, more loving person and I am so honored she touched my life, all our lives, and I had the absolute highest privilege to call one of God’s greatest gifts to this world My Mother. I love you Mommy. We will see you where the roses are always in bloom. A private prayer will be held on November 14, 2020 and she will be laid to rest that day at United Memorial Gardens, in Plymouth, Michigan next to her Mother, Lidia, and Twin Sister, Otilia. Per her wishes, a celebration of life service, ceremony, and feast will take place Summer of 2021 at Vermeulen-Sajewski Funeral Home, 46401 W. Ann Arbor Rd., (Between Sheldon and Beck) Plymouth, MI. The family will reach out with more details of the celebrations this Spring. If you would like to share a gift, in lieu of flowers, the family asks for donations to Olimpia’s most cherished charitable organizations: Michigan Humane Society https://www.michiganhumane.org/tributes/ Humane Society of Huron Valley https://secure2.convio.net/hshv/site/Donation2?idb=1572643432&df_id=4303&mfc_pref=T&4303.donation=form1&idb=0 To share a memory, please use the Share A Memory tab on the web page.

Olimpia Warsaw

October 20, 1951 - November 9, 2020