Lynne A. Cleveland, 73, of Bella Vista, Arkansas, left this earth and joined the collective cosmic energies on June 26, 2022. Lynne was born October 7, 1948, in Pueblo, Colorado to Milton and Elizabeth (Benden) Artley. Monikered "the Little General" by her eldest sister, Lynne made her way through life with vigor and tenacity to the amazement of those around her, overcoming lifelong chronic conditions and illnesses far beyond their proclaimed expiration dates. For such a small stature, she packed a tremendous punch and had an unquenchable fire within her that earned her the status as a cat with nine lives amongst her family and friends.

As the fourth arrival of five siblings, Lynne learned early on that industry and self-sufficiency would serve her well and after she graduated from Rogers High School in 1966, Lynne began her life in Houston, Texas, where she discovered her calling in advocacy for developmental and mental health challenges through her position as a medical research program coordinator at the University of Texas Medical School. She participated in the grant acquisition process, was published in dozens of medical journals, and audited testing processes for many developmental and mental delay disabilities. Her time at UT came to an end when she retired in 2010 and decided to move to Bella Vista, Arkansas.

Simultaneously with her successful career, she put her penchant for leadership to work in her positions with various foundations. Lynne's "little general" approach to life led her to roles of leadership at MHMRA of Harris County, where she was Chairman of the Board of Directors, and The Arc where she was President of the Greater Houston chapter and then President of the Arc of the United States. Her dedication, compassion, and fire for advocacy was unstoppable and led to numerous awards, accolades, and recognitions including Disability Advocacy of the Year and even was honored with Lynne Cleveland Day in Harris County on the government calendar! Despite all of this, Lynne continued to stay humble, storing her awards in a box under the desk, and most of those who knew and loved her never knew the whole extent of which Lynne touched and changed the lives of countless people because you would never hear it from her.

While living in Houston, she met her husband Thomas Irwin and was married on February 6, 1982. It was a sturdy, unshakable love that the afterlife cannot diminish. Tom and Lynne created a life full of joy, love, and dogs. They cherish their dogs and even bred poodles for a period of time, but their capacity for love wasn't just for the four legged type. In an act of insane generosity, they later opened their home and unofficially adopted their 14 year old niece, Whitney, who foraged from Lynne a fascination for Norah Jones, Jane Austen, expertly made cappuccinos, and the need for a back up to any household product in your home, among many other things. Considered as her second set of parents, Whitney cajoled Lynne and Tom into moving from Houston to Arkansas and enjoyed several years of outings and afternoon tea times. Lynne loved visiting and indulging the four boys and other great nieces and nephews and never missed an opportunity to discreetly slide money into the hands of the children for the low, low price of a hug.

Lynne was a force of nature, personally and professionally, but this wouldn't be a complete picture of her as a person without mentioning her impish love of all sources of whimsy. Regularly, items would show up at people's homes because a 'fairy' delivered it and it was a delightful surprise to know she was thinking of you. She found meaning in symbols everywhere and later in her life, donated to wildlife foundations that specialized in primate care and rehabilitation because the mischievous monkeys on a show spoke to her. Her one life goal left undone was owning a capuchin monkey, much to her husband's relief.

While on Earth, Lynne was loved by many people and will be missed by numerous family, friends, and neighbors, especially including her husband, Tom Irwin, her four legged daughters, Tilly and Raven, and Whitney Hull (the two legged daughter with her husband Jesse and their four children), her sister Pat Martin, her brother in law David Artley-Dupree, John Cleveland (and Kathy Varty), Sarah Cleveland, and many nieces and nephews and great nieces and nephews.

Before Lynne left this Earth, she mourned the loss of her parents Milton and Elizabeth Artley; her sister and brother in law, Stephanie and Edward Sandlin; her sister and brother in law, Barbara and Laverne Pedersen; and her brother Milton Artley-Dupree.

In the spirit of Lynne's humble and unassuming nature, her wishes for no services will be respected. In lieu of flowers or any other offerings for the fairies, please consider making a donation to those mischievous monkeys from the Bronx Zoo in her name at the Wildlife Conservation Society at www.wcs.org .

On-line condolences may be made at www.funeralmation.com.