EVELYN LORAINE "Sunni" SCOLLARD

Evelyn Loraine Scollard, 96, passed away peacefully on the evening of June 12, 2024, at Allegria Village in Dearborn, Michigan, concluding a long, robust, and impactful life.  The former Evelyn Sundstrom, born in Detroit, Michigan on February 10, 1928, was known as “Sunni” to her friends and family, a nickname befitting her upbeat personality and always-positive outlook on life.  (After all, you have to be bright to be Sunni.)  Sunni was the middle of three girls, between Henrietta and Betty May.  A 1946 graduate of Fordson High School, Sunni loved to travel, and spent the year’s post-high school circumventing the country with her close circle of friends.  A random encounter with Farley Granger, a leading matinee idol of the day, occurred on one such trip, at Sun Valley Ski Resort in Idaho, leading to a photograph that was widely published in the era’s various film magazines. 

Upon settling down, Sunni landed at the world headquarters of Ford Motor Company in Dearborn, working as an executive assistant.  It was at Ford that she met her future husband, Robert Scollard, on a recreational outing with the company’s ski club.  (Ironically, Sunni’s own parents, the European immigrants Henry and Catherine Buchanan Sundstrom, also met while employed at Ford, as did her firstborn son Robert Jr. and his wife Robin.)  Sunni and Robert (Bob)’s marriage was long, happy, and productive, spawning three children, Robert Jr. (Rob), Henry (Hank), and Clinton (Clint), and spanning four houses. 

Sunni had a great many hobbies, including golf and tennis, but was happiest when she had a new home or room in which to decorate; everybody agreed that her taste and sense of style were immaculate.  She was also a lifelong arts and crafts enthusiast; each summer during their formative years Sunni laid out special projects to keep her sons active and engaged, including decoupage, wax, and resin casting.  Sunni herself acquired a kiln and set up a full-blown ceramics studio in which she experimented with a variety of glass-melting techniques, producing a wide variety of useful tchotchkes, many of which still adorn the homes of their recipients.  Nobody graduated from college without receiving a hand-made blanket or quilt bearing that school’s logo, a ritual that included many members of the extended family.

Sunni was a patient and giving person, traits that served her well in raising her three sons.  Whether employing a bullhorn or a makeshift mission bell to summon them at the family’s beloved summer house in Stoney Point, Ontario (built by her father) or using reverse psychology to impart the dangers of cigarette smoking.  Sunni was as creative a mother as she was a decorator.  Her World’s Greatest Mom credentials are numerous:  indulging the boys in the occasional shopping trip to Muirhead’s with a root beer float at A&W instead of a day in school, driving to the Masonic Temple box office in Detroit (and waiting with the characters in line) to buy concert tickets when the local Ticketmaster was out of commission, turning a blind eye to the backyard being mangled into a variety of ice rinks, baseball diamonds and DIY swimming pools.  She instinctively knew when to reign in and when to let go.  She loved to dote on her granddaughters and enjoyed sharing her love of crafting with them.  In later years, she became a tireless caregiver to her two sisters, and ultimately, her husband, never once complaining. 

As her health began to decline, she stayed upbeat, rolling with whatever life threw at her and serving as a tremendous inspiration to those around her.  Her memory may have faded but she never forgot the most important people in her life, her close friends and family.  She touched the lives of those around her immeasurably, and will forever be remembered, missed, and celebrated.

SURVIVING FAMILY MEMBERS

Sunni is survived by her sons Rob (Robin), Hank, and Clint (Aimee), and her granddaughters Morgan, Hayley, Elle, and Riley Scollard.  She is predeceased by her husband Bob, as well as her sisters Henrietta and Betty May.  

FUNERAL ARRANGEMENTS

The family will receive friends  Monday, July 22, from 9:00 AM until the time of Memorial Funeral Services at 9:30 AM in Allegria Village Chapel, 15101 Ford Road, Dearborn, Michigan  48126.  Final resting place Cadillac Memorial Gardens West Cemetery. 

MEMORIAL DONATIONS

The family suggests memorial tributes to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital:   events.stjude.org/Sunni_Scollard

CONDOLENCES

Kindly click on "Share a Memory" to leave a loving Remembrance/Condolence. Later, click on "Tribute Wall" to view them.

FLORISTS

Please deliver all floral arrangements directly to Allegria Village Chapel on Monday, July 14, by 9:00 AM.

THANK YOU

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of EVELYN LORAINE "Sunni" SCOLLARD, please visit our floral store.