Jean Colleen Buscemi:

Fierce Patriot and Friend of the People,

Once Named Clark Co. Democrat of the Year

While Jean Colleen (Mullin) Buscemi lived a long life, she never shared her age, so we won't either. She

passed peacefully in the early hours of May 15th, 2022, following a brief stay in hospice care at Mercy

Hospital after spending her

final half year with the fine residents and caretakers of Oakwood Village. She is preceded in death by

parents Thomas and Helen (Griffin) Mullin and siblings Maryann, Thomas, Kay and Sally and survived by

husband Dr. William I. Buscemi of Oakwood Village, daughter Sarah Buscemi Gray of Springfield (and her

children Brandi, Dominic, Aaron and Dina and late husband Eric), son Robert Buscemi (and wife Janet T.

Planet) of Los Angeles, brother John (and wife Mary Jane) Mullin of Columbus, brother-in-law Thomas

(and wife Judith) Buscemi of West Jefferson and countless adoring friends and relatives. Colleen's

earliest years were spent on Lincoln Road in Grandview, where from K-12 she was endured by the nuns

of Our Lady of Victory Academy. She then married Bill and remained his loving wife for over six decades.

She was a member of Wittenberg Women during Bill's long tenure as a political science professor there.

Colleen was universally beloved with a notoriously sly and rowdy wit, always with a twinkle in her blue

Irish eyes, with innumerable friends from all walks of life. She was a fierce patriot and friend of the

people, big on the flag and democracy, working the polls most Election Days where she warmly greeted

neighbors of every political stripe. She fought for fair play, inclusion and the underdog; disliked bullies,

bigots and sore losers;

believed in women's rights, civil rights, the franchise and the public square (she and Bill subscribed to

and were known to write letters to the editor of the Springfield News-Sun and its predecessors for half a

century); was once named Clark County Democrat of the Year; and proudly served as a delegate to

Democratic National Conventions for Gary Hart's Presidential bid in 1984 and Al Gore's in 2000. Colleen

was an active volunteer, most recently for the Nearly New Shop, which supports Springfield's needy

through the Young Woman's Mission. A legendary prankster with a giant heart, Colleen was always

quick to laugh and cry. Join family and friends to do just that on June 4 (Saturday) from 1 to 4pm on the

ground floor of the Courtyard by Marriott Springfield Downtown, where visitors are requested to arrive

before 1:30pm for a eulogy followed by remembrances, where there will be refreshment and where

Colleen pre-requested you dress colorfully and bright, as she was a great lover of fashion, theater and

the arts. Her ashes will be spread in Springfield, at Indian and Buckeye Lakes and in Sarasota, Florida.

Memorial donations may be made in her name to the Nearly New Shop, the ACLU, the World Wildlife

Fund or Planned Parenthood.

Published by Springfield News Sun from May 22 to Jun. 2, 2022.