LATHAM — Arlene A. VanSlyke was a woman who loved to laugh and joke, never losing her childlike wonder. She died on Monday, Sept. 4, 2017. She was 75.

“She was like a little girl in a big body,” said her daughter, Patricia Stempel.

Mrs. VanSlyke was born on March 11, 1942, to the late Andrew and Louise (née Parker) Marino. She grew up in Colonie, and attended Central High School, and left home at age 17.

It wasn’t much later that she met and married Patrick J. Stempel. The two were married on June 26, 1960, at The Church of Saint Claire in Colonie.

The couple lived on Old Stage Road in East Berne, where Mrs. VanSlyke became a homemaker and a mother of five.

“She made sure we ate and she helped when she could,” said her daughter.

Mrs. VanSlyke lived in Berne for 29 years, and made many friends on the Hill and became a life member of the East Berne Fire Department Ladies’ Auxiliary, as her first husband was a member of the fire department.

She and her husband eventually divorced, and she moved to many different places in the Capital Region, including Delmar and Rensselaer. It was at the apartments Van Rensselaer Heights in Rensselaer that she met her second husband, Paul M. VanSlyke.

They were married on Oct. 1, 1995, at The Church of St. John the Evangelist in Rensselaer, and later had their vows renewed at St. Ambrose Church in Latham, of which Mrs. VanSlyke was a long-time member.

“They were funny,” said her daughter, of the couple. “They were very happy with each other.

Mr. VanSlyke later died, but Mrs. VanSlyke eventually found someone to share her happiness with. She met Fran O’Donnell online, and eventually married him at the East Berne firehouse. Her daughter, Ms. Stempel, was her maid of honor.

“Two old farts,” said Ms. Stempel, affectionately, of the couple. “They both were in their wheel chairs.”

Their marriage was short, as Mr. O’Donnell died a year later, but the couple found companionship in each other, said her daughter.

Ms. Stempel said that all three of Mrs. VanSlyke’s husbands had a strange sense of humor, which Mrs. VanSlyke also had. She loved being around people and telling jokes, ranging from puns to dirty ones.

“If you were walking with her, she would run over your toes,” Ms. Stempel said of her mother after she was using a wheelchair due to joint problems.

Mrs. VanSlyke was a homemaker until her eldest daughter was in 10th grade. She then began working in the cafeteria at Bethlehem Central High School. She later became a home health aid, serving hospice centers in the Capital District for many years until she physically was unable to.

She lived up to the phrase “those who have little, give a lot,” with her attentive service as a home health aid; her volunteer work in the ladies’ auxiliary; and her work serving communion at St. Ambrose Church, which she dutifully attended every Saturday afternoon. The church was near her last home, at the Ashfield apartments in Latham. When she lived on the Hill, Mrs. VanSlyke attended the now-closed St. Bernadette’s Church.

“She felt closer to God when she was in there … ,” said Ms. Stempel of her mother’s Roman Catholic beliefs. “She liked the people.”

Her family described her as a devoted homemaker, as well as a loving mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, and sister.

“She doted on the kids,” said her daughter. “She loved her grandchildren.”

She was also a fan of Tweety Bird. Her granddaughter, Felicia Schaller, even painted the yellow cartoon character on her casket.

“She loved Tweety, she loved yellow,” said her daughter.

Mrs. VanSlyke decorated her apartment in Latham with special napkins and wreaths during the holidays, and had her door adorned with items throughout the year, including Tweety Bird and a statue of St. Jeanne Jugan.

“She decorated what she could,” Ms. Stempel said.

She also like playing card games on her computer, and used her computer to keep in touch with old friends. Her wheelchair kept her from traveling very often, but last year her family brought her to Atlantic City in New Jersey.

“We didn’t win anything … ,” her daughter said. “But we tried.”

Mrs. VanSlyke kept cats throughout her life, but couldn’t afford the security deposit for one at her last apartment. Her headstone will have an image of a cat on it.

Her daughter remembers Mrs. VanSlyke as a woman with a big heart and personality, whom she teased by tickling her feet and calling her “Arleenie.”

“My mother was a woman with a big heart...” said Ms. Stempel. “Whether it was a kind word or a plate of cookies,” she added, of her mother’s good deeds.

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Mrs. VanSlyke is survived by her children, Patricia A. Stempel, and her husband, Jack Schaller; Patrick J. Stempel, and his wife, Kimberly Stempel; Michael A. Stempel; Diane T. Belott, and her husband, John Belott; and George E. Stempel; her grandchildren, Felicia Schaller; Patrick “P.J.” Stempel Jr.; Veronica Stempel; Michael Belott; Joshua Belott; Ashley Belott; her great-grandchildren, Kaylee Dutcher and Joshua Alan Belott Jr.; her siblings, Andrew Marino; Mildred Moffitt; Dolores Hahn; Susan MacDaniele; and Debbie Dunn; she is also survived by several nieces and nephews.

She had three husbands, Patrick J. Stempel, Paul M. VanSlyke, and Fran O’Donnell, who all died before her.

Relatives and friends are invited to call on Thursday Sept. 7, 2017 from 10:30-11:30 a.m. at St. Ambrose Church, 347 Old Loudon Road, Latham.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Thursday at 11:30 a.m. at the conclusion of the visitation at the church with Father Brian Kelly officiating. Interment will take place at Our Lady of Angels Cemetery, 1389 Central Ave, Colonie, NY 12205.

An event held in Mrs. VanSlyke’s memory will be held in the community room at Ashfield Apartments, 2 Jeanne Jugan Lane, Latham NY 12110.

There will also be an event held in her memory at the East Berne firehouse on 25 Main St. in East Berne this Saturday from 1 to 5 p.m.

Memorial contributions may be made to the American Liver Foundation, 3900 Broadway, Suite 2700, New York, NY 10006.

— H. Rose Schneider