Luella Sue Leys

It’s hard to put a person’s life into words.

Mom is such a little word for someone who lived such a big life.

Everyone who knew Luella knew a piece of her.

Some knew the nurse.

Others knew the missionary.

Some knew the gardener.

Some knew the Red Cross volunteer.

Some knew the massage therapist, the church leader, the Mary Kay consultant, the game player, the friend, the neighbor.

We knew Mom.

She was all of those things and somehow always more.

Born on September 30, 1938, Luella grew up on Michigan’s Old Mission Peninsula among the cherry orchards near Traverse City. She fulfilled her lifelong dream of becoming a registered nurse, later specializing as a Certified Nurse of the Operating Room. Alongside her husband, Lyle, she served as a medical missionary in Honduras, where she cared for countless families and delivered more than 150 babies.

Service wasn’t something Luella did.

It was who she was.

Whether responding to disasters with the American Red Cross, organizing blood drives, leading in her church and community, returning to school at age seventy to become a massage therapist, or quietly caring for those she loved, Luella lived her faith with open hands and an open heart.

Her greatest joy, however, was found around the family table.

She loved canasta, cribbage, Sequence, and just about any game that brought people together. She patiently taught every grandchild who wanted to learn.

She never let you win.

She taught you how to win.

She shared every strategy, every secret, and every trick she knew because she believed you were capable of learning. Once you did…

Well… she’d beat you fair and square.

She was wonderfully competitive, completely honest, and always gracious.

For Luella, games were never really about winning.

They were about time together.

Everyone who knew Luella knew a piece of her.

We were blessed to know the whole.

She is survived by James (Cindy) Cook, Dean Cook, Robert Cook, Robin (Dan) Pegg, Lyle J. Jr. (Barbara) Leys, Jan Stevens, Russell Leys, Karen (Wayne) Berens; numerous grandchildren and even more great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren; two brothers Henry “Hank” Bates, and Charles “Charlie” (Liz) Bates.

Luella was preceded in death by her beloved husband, Lyle, and children Cathy Elwartowski and Rodney Scott Leys; parents Jess and Helen Bates; sisters Caroline (Wade) Wagoner, Lillian Gibson; and sister-in-law, Diane Bates.

Visitation with the family will be held from 4-7 p.m. Monday, July 20, 2026, at Kubiak-Cook Funeral Home – Dorr Chapel, 4330 18th St., Dorr, MI 49323. A memorial service remembering Luella will be held 3 p.m. Tuesday, July 21, 2026, at Community of Christ Church, 4790 Jacob St. SW, Wyoming, MI 49418, with visitation from 2-2:45 p.m. prior to the service. In memory of Luella and in lieu of flowers, donations may be made to The Williams Syndrome Association.

The family welcomes memories and messages at www.kubiakcookdorr.com in Luella’s online guest book.