Mara McClellan

On September 1, 2025, Mara relocated to Heaven and received her crown as she heard the words,

"Well done, good and faithful servant." At a very early age, she accepted Jesus as her Lord and Savior.

From that day on, she served Him faithfully. That, all by itself, is her legacy and testimony, but there's

more.

Mara married Craig L. McClellan on July 9, 2005, and they went on a 20-year adventure of a lifetime filled with incredible highs and occasional lows. They loved each other so much and continually grew in the Lord and with each other by leaps and bounds.

Mara attended and graduated from First Assembly Christian School. While there, as a teen, she was part of the Christian singing group, Mended Heart. Interestingly, a major heart issue on August 26, led to the end of her life here on earth, but the moment she stepped into the presence of her Papa…she called God "Papa"…her heart was totally and eternally healed.

If you check out Mara's Facebook page, you will find that she describes herself in this way: Bumpy Guy (Craig's term of endearment for her), Grammazon, Marza, Worshipping Warrior Woman, CFO Eagles Wings. We all agreed she was Wonder Woman.

Mara loved so many things. She sang and praised on many worship teams over the years. Even getting stuck in traffic jams were reasons to lower the windows and sing. Everywhere she went was her stage, and she sang. Mara was a diehard prayer warrior. When she ran out of words (which didn't happen often), she prayed on in her prayer language. Watching wrestling, the Tigers, and the Red Wings and gaming gave Mara much pleasure. Movies were especially fun for Mara, and constantly reciting movie quotes became a different language for her. Self-care was important to her, and she was beautiful inside and out. Mara loved to travel; her adventures were vast, and nothing was out of bounds.

Tina recalls Mara's words of reassurance to her husband whenever he struggled, as we all do from time to time, were "I was sent here to love the broken, because not everyone can." Truer words were never spoken. Mara was gifted with compassion and unconditional love for everyone. Steve remembers that his mom was good at making memories out of nothing and really enjoyed taking advantage of time. She went on unique dates with her individual children to make memories and called them "sneak-rets" aka "sneak-secrets." This is how Steve defined his mom's unconditional love.

When Tina lived in Louisiana and was homesick, her mom would always tell her "1000 miles for a kiss was worth it." Tina added that if anyone ever needed anything, her mom always jumped up to meet their need…generous with time and in deeds. Mara always made Tina feel special. Every smile, hug, and conversation was a gift to everyone. Tina said that there are not enough words to explain how kind and special Mara was as a mom and friend to all.

Time spent with family and friends was Mara's absolute favorite thing to do. She had an ENORMOUS Empathy Chip. Anyone who met her loved her instantly, and they were friends forever. She was extraordinarily blessed in the Friend Department. Time with family was especially priceless to Mara. Making memories with Craig, her kids, and her grandchildren were precious to her and made her so happy. Time spent with her mom in deep conversations about things that mattered were of invaluable spiritual worth to both of them. Seeds were planted and watered resulting in great growth and eternal

fruit.

Mara was special, but what does that mean? Comments have rolled in over the past week. Here are a few words that were used to describe her: kind, positive, great hugger, a jovial personality that was infectious, incredibly talented, witty, lovely, wonderful, free-spirited, and extravagantly generous, One classmate wrote that Mara "was always like the finale of a great fireworks show. Full of excitement, boldness, and energy." Notice that all of these descriptors of Mara are more about her "who" than her "do." She was a woman of great character.

Mara has been extraordinarily generous throughout her entire lifetime. As she stepped into eternity with Papa, her final act of giving was done by donating whatever she had left to give. Her organ donations will extend the lives of others, and the beat will go on.

Mara stepped into the presence of the Lord surrounded by family who would reunite with her at a later time. It wasn't good bye; it was good bye for now. Here's the reality…our time together will be continued.

Mara is survived by her husband, Craig; children Stephen (Amanda) Stover, Christina (Jon) Sager, and Samantha Fries; Craig's children Jerrod McClellan, Amanda McClellan, Raechelle (Ty) Bondarevich, Aaron McClellan, and Audra (Ian) Brothwell. Grandchildren Scarlet, Charlotte, Lexi, Gavin, Jaxon, Jenesis, Jago, William, Abigail, Wesley, Kyle, Grace, Gabriel, Mitchell, Blake, and Eden. She is also survived by her mother Linda Rowgo and brother Russ (Christy) Rowgo. She will be missed by her sister-in-law/best friend Kimberly (KJ) Whitney. Mara is survived by aunts, uncles, cousins, and countless friends. She is predeceased by her father, David Rowgo and grandparents Paul and Christine Schrier.

Mara's post on her birthday this year in part was "Happy defines this woman as I commemorate the completion of 55 years on this beautiful temporary home." Now, less than two months later, she is forever living in her permanent home with Papa. Who knew? God did. Charm is deceptive and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the Lord will be praised…Proverbs 31:30

A Celebration of Mara's Eternal Life will be held at K First, 5550 Oakland Drive, Kalamazoo on Saturday, September 13, at 11:00. A luncheon will follow so that Mara's "family" can continue to appreciate and share how blessed they were to have been a part of her life. New friendships will be made, and the beat will go on. Contributions in Mara's memory can be made to Gift of Life and Samaritan's Purse.