Michelle Renee (Paulus) Sullivan

Michelle Renee (Paulus) Sullivan, passed away October 26, 2023 at the age of 47. She was born April 22, 1976 in Orlando, Florida. There she attended Lake Silver Elementary, Robbinswood Middle School, and Evans High School. After high school, she received an AA degree at Valencia Community College.

 Michelle moved to Michigan after marrying her husband and soul mate. They were happily married for 23 blessed years and lived in Rochester Hills and Lake Orion, Michigan after which they traversed the country to live in Issaquah and Sammamish, Washington as well as Westfield, Indiana. Throughout these places where she lived, she made many joyful memories and met many wonderful friends. Michelle was a member of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Catholic Church

Michelle will always be remembered for her selfless love and devotion to her family and friends. She had a huge heart, a strong sense of nurturing and displayed compassion and empathy in interacting with family, friends and anyone in need. She loved being around children and animals, and they loved her. She was devoted to teaching and caring for her two sons, of whom she was immensely proud. She taught them the importance of getting a good education and to adhere to strong morals. She was also very involved in her sons’ school, serving on the PTA board, as a room mother, and loved volunteering often in many different capacities. Being a computer whiz and highly intelligent, she was inquisitive and always researching to find the best solutions to help others with questions posed in life. She was a devoted caregiver to anyone in need, where she would jump in to investigate and understand the problem and help provide support and stand up for others. She was easy to talk to with no judgement and very engaging.

Michelle also had an adventurous spirit and a witty sense of humor. Her beautiful, infectious smile and personality would light up a room. She had many wonderful memories laughing and joking with her older sister, her mom and dad, and her many aunts, uncles, and cousins. As a child, she was often found outdoors on her bike, playing softball with her sister and dad, beating her best friend in ping pong, or doing flips in her swimming pool. Michelle loved music, dancing, enjoyed the challenge of puzzles, word games, and being next to her mom helping teach elementary students. She was adaptable and wholeheartedly jumped into the activities and interests of others, whether that was wearing waders and fishing in cold water, or learning the intricacies of bourbon tasting, and passing this along to anyone who would want to talk.

Michelle was a true animal and nature lover, nurturing this love in her family.  She was willing to go above and beyond to provide this exposure to her sons. She made countless trips to zoos across the country, raised butterflies, tadpoles, gerbils, praying mantises, fish and baby birds. Her pets included her dogs, Casey, Mandy and Suzie, and her cats, Patches, Dusty and Lani. Each of the pets took on amazing social and loving personalities because of her inherent loving ways with them.

Michelle enjoyed spending time with her family doing many outdoor activities, such as hiking, bike riding, paragliding, camping, tubing, whitewater rafting and ziplining.  She enjoyed the seasons and long walks with her dogs. She traveled to Mt. Rainier over a dozen times and enjoyed the wilderness and majesty of the Pacific Northwest with her family. She became certified in Scuba diving and spent many wonderful vacations with her family in places like Jamaica, Hawaii, Florida, and the Puget Sound, enjoying the outdoors, swimming with dolphins, turtles and magnificent sea life, she never missed a chance to be in or on the water. She also enjoyed traveling, having experienced Japan, the Caribbean, Canada, Mexico, and many cruises and road trips across country with her family. It is these beautiful memories that will be cherished forever.    

Michelle was always so vivacious with a zest for life. We are heartbroken, but we know Heaven has a beautiful angel watching over us. She will be deeply missed and will always be in our thoughts and prayers.

Survivors include her loving husband, Kyle Sullivan; sons, Kevin and Sean Sullivan; sister, Suzanne Miller (Jon Miller); parents, Ken and Bernadette Paulus, and many aunts, uncles and cousins.

Michelle was preceded in death her maternal grandparents, Larry and Rita Romano and paternal grandparents, Bob and Corine Paulus.

Family and friends will gather Friday, November 3, 2023 at 10:30 a.m. in Our Lady Mt. Carmel Catholic Church where the Mass of Christian Burial will be conducted at 12:00 (noon) p.m.

In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to The Genetics Society of America, 6120 Executive Blvd, Suite 550, Rockville, MD 20852. Please make a note the donation is ‘In memory of Michelle Sullivan’. Envelopes will be available at the service.

Bussell Family Funerals is privileged to assist the family in arrangements.