Cecelia Stevenson

CECELIA STEVENSON, known as “Little Baby” or “LeBay” by many and affectionately as “Auntie” by the dozens of children she cared for over the years, departed this life suddenly on April 26, 2024 due to a chronic medical condition. She was 81 years old. Born on October 18, 1942 in Baltimore, Maryland, Cecelia was the second daughter of Alexander and Ella Stevenson. She grew up at her Aunt Liza’s house on West Lexington Street before moving to Arunah Avenue. Growing up, she used to go down to Leland, NC in the summer with her older sister Geraldine to visit extended family. Following high school, she worked several jobs, first for a period of time as a nurse’s attendant, then briefly at the Tastykake factory on the corner of Baltimore Street and Warwick Avenue, and later at Commercial Laundry on Longwood Street, where she worked for seven years and helped her cousin Evelyn get a job. Her son, James E. Brogdon, Jr. (“Choo”) was born in 1970 and following his birth she stopped work to raise him full time. Cecelia had a knack for child care, starting first with babysitting her niece Denise and nephew James (“Junior”) while her older sister worked. Word spread gradually at her sister’s job and around Arunah Avenue, and eventually Cecelia wound up running a small, informal child care service from her house, with up to 10 kids at a time. It was an invaluable service to many working families and single parents in Baltimore who needed day care for their children, and it provided the children a safe place to have fun, learn, and follow rules (not always successfully) while their parents were away at work. On busy days, some children would stay in the den in the back of the house, while others stayed in the basement. The second floor was offlimits, where Cecelia kept her dogs (first Chucky and Benji, later BJ and Casey). But the kids didn’t just stay in the house. Activities included trips to Chucky Cheese, the DZ Discovery Zone, or the East Point Arcade (on good behavior). There was a plastic pool and a basketball hoop in the back yard on summer days and excursions to Walmart and Shop Right to stock up on juices and Hot Pockets. In spite of all the activity, Cecelia also managed to help her neighbors, even bailing people out of jail on occasion. Her friend and neighbor Beulah Edward was always there to provide companionship and rides whenever she needed to go somewhere. In her spare time she would relax watching her favorite shows or losing herself in a good romance novel. And every Christmas the house used to light up with all sorts of decorations, inside and out. Above all else was Cecelia‘s incredible ability to understand children and treat them like they mattered. She was part guardian, counselor and friend. She was a great listener who knew how to read the needs of her kids. In time many of them would grow up to have children of their own, and this second generation would also go to spend time with Auntie as their parents worked. Shortly before she died, one of Auntie’s former kids even asked her if she would look out for her recently born granddaughter. She leaves to cherish her memory: two nephews, James Jr. and Lester Howard; and cousins, Millie Thomas, Shirley Moore, Billie Jean and Dorthy Andrews, Louis Moore Sr., and Timothy Peter Moore. But equally important, she leaves behind many individuals, family and otherwise, who spent their formative years under her special style of day care including: Lynnea Mitchell and her daughter Torri, Latavia Watson, MaKayla Howard, Steve Nash and Michael Johnson, their daughters Ma’leah, Gerlyn and Lelah, Fat Baby, Veronica, Cierra, another Steve, Patty and Norman Filter, Georgie, Jay (who the other kids used to tease), Darion and Terrance Walker, Dayon, Jamal, Dennin, Diondra, another James, Ashlee, Ryan, Vincent (who used to feed animal crackers to the dogs), and others.

Tributes

Cecelia Stevenson

October 18, 1942 - April 25, 2024