Cara C. Reischel

Cara Catherine Cato Reischel of Westland, Michigan, passed away peacefully to eternal life on May 28 at the age of 52 at the University of Michigan Cardiovascular Center in Ann Arbor. She was surrounded by her loving family and in the embrace of her husband Joel and daughter Cora.

Cara loved to love on people, and she did so fiercely, actively and unceasingly. It was an others-first kind of love, typically delivered with little fanfare or spotlight or an expectation that there was something in it for her. With a personality always exceedingly positive and outgoing, Cara was a great listener, with a keen sense of when friends were most in need of a friend.

She loved through faithful, daily praying and thoughtful gestures toward people in need – from the neighbors with a leaky roof for whom she rallied funds and contractors to the wheelchair bound church friend who was overwhelmed with mounting home maintenance issues. From the homeless in Cass Corridor who needed someone to talk to just as much as they needed anything else, to the families at the Food Bank who needed a good meal and warm company.

Cara was born June 26, 1968 in Livonia to William and Carroll Cato, the baby sister to two older brothers, Curt and Cary. From her earliest days, she was always on the move, excelling at softball (as a first baseman, she could do the splits to catch a speedy runner, even with the hip dysplasia she developed as a teen), baton twirling and more. As a girl, she dreamed of having a family and a little girl of her own – and even had that little girl’s name already picked out. As a teen she suffered a cardiac arrest that would continue her lifelong story of the heart. While her physical one lagged and slowed, her spiritual heart soared. Her heart for others blossomed. Her heart for the Lord flourished and never wavered.

In 1999, that heart would find its match when she met her future husband, Joel. They shared a love of good food (Cara had a thing for her mom’s frosting recipe), good movies and birthdays that were exactly six weeks apart. They married in October 2000 at Greenfield Village, then started a journey to grow their family that culminated in 2005 when they adopted a daughter from China. More than a daughter, really. This baby girl was Cara’s destiny, and that name she had picked out so long ago was a perfect fit. Cora Ruth Cato Reischel – Cara’s pride and joy and a wonder of curiosity, delight and happiness who would grow up surrounded by a deep and abiding love. Her name is almost the same as her mom’s and her personality would develop that way too. Cara loved to read (she read the Bible clear through at least four times and loved Mitch Albom novels), and so too Cora loves to read. Gardening, the Marvel Cinematic Universe (Cara liked Bucky Barnes), and music (Cara liked everything from Christian songs to Lauren Daigle and Imagine Dragons) were passions they would enjoy together as a family.

Cara and Cora also homeschooled together through ninth grade, an experience that so well-prepared Cora academically that she now boasts a glistening grade point average at Lutheran High School Westland. It was a schooling that stressed math and science and English, but also included long talks about life and love and the Lord. And always the loving encouragement to just keep trying and dare to dream big.

Cara’s favorite book of the Bible was Ruth. Verse 2:12 reads, "May the Lord repay you for what you have done. May you be richly rewarded by the Lord, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge." Indeed, Cara has received her rich reward in a place where her heart beats strong and overflows with love and blessings.

Cara is survived by her husband Joel, daughter Cora, brothers Curt and Cary (Pam), nephews Christopher Reischel and Benjamin Pelletier, nieces Caralyn Cato, Madeleine Reischel and Emma Pelletier, in-laws Stephen and Elsa Reischel, Jon and Lisa Reischel and Todd and Amy Pelletier, as well as countless friends and extended family. She was preceded in death by her parents William and Carroll Sue Cato.

A memorial visitation will be June 12 from 11am-6pm at Harry J. Will Funeral Home (37000 Six Mile Rd. in Livonia). Funeral service will be held at 4:00pm on June 13 at 2|42 Community Church (35475 Five Mile Rd. in Livonia).

Cara was a staunch supporter of organ donation. In lieu of flowers, please register to be an organ donor with Gift of Life Michigan. Monetary gifts can be made to support Cora’s education.