Maura Campbell

Maura Lynn Reardon Campbell Maura Lynn Reardon Campbell, 64, passed away Sunday, Oct. 13, 2024. Maura was born April 11, 1960, in Enid, Okla., on a U.S. Air Force base, to Michael Peter Reardon and Marian Helen Little Reardon. She often laughed when sharing that the military hospital was condemned and slated for demolition. Thanks to her father’s job as a fighter pilot for the Air Force, Maura grew up all over the country, as well as in Germany. The oldest of three, Maura often took on the role of breaking the ice in new communities and new schools. Her charm, wit, warmth and generous smile stayed with her throughout her life and is what is most remembered by those who loved her. Despite the frequent moves, Maura considered Colorado her home base, where her cherished grandparents, Joseph Francis Little and Helen Cottrell Little, lived and where her mother was raised. In Denver, after graduating from Hillsdale College, she met her beloved Duncan Campbell, also known as "Dunc the Hunk," in 1984, while they were both working in Colorado politics. They were married March 2, 1985, at the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception in Denver and honeymooned in the Sonoma wine country. Maura’s professional accomplishments as a strategic communications expert and public relations pro in state government and community partnerships are too numerous to name. They spanned from the Colorado Secretary of State’s Office to the Michigan Governor’s Office, to multiple state government agencies — under four different gubernatorial administrations — to the Detroit Regional News Hub. Additionally, Maura followed in the footsteps of her mother-in-law, Betsy Campbell, as a dedicated volunteer. Maura was an active member and former president of the Garden Club of Michigan, a committee lead for the Garden Club of America, a member of Sigma Gamma and a sustaining member of the Junior League. A visionary leader, Maura’s professional and volunteer career was one marked by her collaborative spirit around bringing teams together to accomplish major — sometimes deemed impossible — feats. Never was this more true than with Oudolf Garden Detroit. It took many hands to build the garden, but Maura wrote the love letter to Piet Oudolf that kicked it off and was instrumental in assembling the all-volunteer grounds crew that made the garden a reality. Additionally, her experience in state government and Detroit — her adopted home — were crucial in navigating the many layers to build a garden on an island owned by the city of Detroit and run by the state of Michigan. She did this while leading the Michigan Society of Eye Physicians and Surgeons as the executive director, all against the backdrop of sparring with cancer and doing everything imaginable to remain with her family on this earth. A fervently devoted mother, Maura’s children, Alexandra, Meredith and Connor, had the great privilege of being parented by a woman who, in the midst of a demanding professional career and obtaining her master’s degree from the Newhouse School at Syracuse University, made homemade Halloween costumes, cooked dinner every night and always made them feel like her No. 1 priority. That motherly love extended equally to her Italian Rotary exchange student daughter, Daiana Contini; son-in-law, Tom Maegdlin; and daughter-in-law, Ashley McGovern. But no role did she enjoy more than that of grandmother, or "Maurie," to Malcolm, Silas, Elizabeth, Florence and William. Maura was predeceased by her mother and mother-in-law. She is survived by her husband; children and grandchildren; father; and siblings, Michaela Prchlik (Michael), Brian (Lynn) and Joseph (Kristin). She also is very loved by a large clan of nieces, nephews and cousins. Her multitude of family and friends are grieving her loss too soon, but also toasting champagne to a life full of love, grit, humor and ice cream. A memorial service will be held at 1 p.m. Friday, Nov. 15, at Ss. Peter and Paul Jesuit Church, 629 E. Jefferson, Detroit. A reception will immediately follow at The Detroit Club. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Oudolf Garden Detroit, oudolfgardendetroit.org/donate/donate-fog/. Please sign Maura's guestbook and share a memory.