Arlene P. Guy

On April 21, 2026; ARLENE PAVLICEK GUY passed away. She was the beloved wife of the late John Guy; loving mother of James Guy (Margaret Hasek) and Cynthia Guy (Stephen Freedman); devoted grandmother of Michael and Anna Freedman, and Emma and Jack Guy; dear great grandmother of Elliot Freedman Bauer.

Arlene grew up in Cleveland, Ohio, the first grandchild and niece of an extended family that doted upon her. She was the only child of John Pavlicek, a master electrotyper, staunch union man, and avid outdoorsman, and Irma Muncie, a homemaker, Federal Reserve bookkeeper, and officer in the Ladies Auxiliary of the Cleveland Electrotypers Union. Arlene excelled in school, where she was elevated to the Major Work Class at Harvey Rice Junior High and served as Editor-in-Chief of the John Hay High School newspaper.

At the age of 17 she took a job at the Cleveland headquarters of the Republic Steel Corporation, where she swiftly rose from the typing pool to executive secretary to Republic’s Chief Engineer.

In 1948, Arlene married her high school sweetheart, John Guy. They moved to the Eastside suburbs, where Arlene focused her considerable executive skills and energy on her family and community. Arlene managed her household, volunteered at church and her children’s schools, took classes at local cultural institutions, and maintained steadfast friendships with her contemporaries in the St. Margaret Mary’s ladies circle. She also exercised her creativity as an expert needle woman, sewing and tailoring her own wardrobe and creating crewel and cross-stitch embroidery of great beauty. In their later years, she and John indulged their love of travel in the United States. Their favorite vacation destination was Williamsburg, Virginia, which they visited eleven times.

Facing health problems in 2015, Arlene and John relocated to the Baltimore area in order to be closer to their daughter. They initially lived in Augsburg Senior Village in Pikesville, Maryland. John soon passed away, but Arlene settled into the life of the community.

There she made dear friends and returned to her early love of writing. As a core member of the community’s Creative Writing class, she produced 128 short stories over the course of four years, many of them vivid accounts of growing up in Cleveland during the Depression and World War II.

In 2023, Arlene’s health failed, and she moved to assisted living at the Residences at Vantage Point in Columbia, Maryland. There she lived her final years with devoted caregivers and family.

A private family service is being planned for a future date in Cleveland, Ohio, where Arlene will be laid to rest in Lakeview Cemetery beside her husband. Arrangements by Witzke Funeral Homes, Inc. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in her memory to Cleveland Clinic, Philanthropy Institute, PO Box 931517, Cleveland, OH 44193.