Celeste Stiehl Obituary

Celeste M. "Cissy" (nee Sullivan) Stiehl

September 7, 1925 - March 22, 2026

Belleville, Illinois - Celeste M. "Cissy" (nee Sullivan) Stiehl, formerly of Belleville, Illinois, born September 7, 1925, died on March 22, 2026, at her home at Meridian Village Retirement Community in Glen Carbon, Illinois. Celeste was a devoted wife, mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother who lived a remarkable 100 years.

Celeste served in public office, where she was a trailblazer and legislative leader. In 1972, she became the first woman elected to the Illinois General Assembly from St. Clair County. Shortly thereafter, she became the first woman to serve in leadership in the Illinois legislature when she was elected assistant minority leader and later assistant majority leader.

In recognition of her achievements in civic affairs, Celeste was named a St. Louis Woman of Achievement in 1975 by the St. Louis Globe-Democrat.

Following her service in the Illinois General Assembly, Celeste became the executive director of Belleville Economic Progress, Inc., the predecessor of the Belleville Chamber of Commerce. She also was a member of the Southern Illinois University Board of Trustees.

Known for her outgoing personality and a sharp wit that kept everyone laughing, Celeste never met a stranger and loved spending time with friends and family. She enjoyed hosting pool parties, family dinners, and Christmas celebrations, usually ending the night with a roaring game of charades. Celeste also loved traveling, especially with her husband of 68 years, with whom she visited more than 30 countries.

Celeste lived in Belleville for the majority of her life and was active in her community. She grew up on Signal Hill Boulevard and attended Blessed Sacrament and the Academy of Notre Dame before studying at Katie Gibbs Secretarial School in New York City. During World War II, she worked at Scott Air Field, where she met her husband. When Celeste's children were in grade school, she was a room mother, PTA member, and Cub Scout den mother. Celeste also served as president of the St. Clair County Republican Women's Club and became a member of P.E.O. and Delta Kappa Gamma.

A longtime member of First United Presbyterian Church, Celeste served for a number of years as a Stephens Minister, providing one-on-one, Christ-centered support to individuals in the congregation who were going through a crisis or life difficulty.

Celeste's many accomplishments in the Illinois legislature included the Illinois Mine Subsidence Act, which she drafted and sponsored to address the needs of thousands of Illinois homeowners and businesses. The act required Illinois insurers to make mine subsidence insurance coverage available to all property owners in Illinois. It also established the Illinois Mine Subsidence Insurance Fund (IMSIF) as a private reinsurer for losses related to mine subsidence. IMSIF was one of the first programs in the country to enable private sector insurance for homeowners and businesses affected by the ravages of mine subsidence and did not require government subsidies or expenditures. Today, it also underwrites research, investigations, and education related to the perils of mine subsidence.

Celeste also played an instrumental part in securing funding commitments from the states of Missouri and Illinois to enable the reopening of the MLK Bridge across the Mississippi River.

While in the legislature, Celeste was appointed chair of the Illinois House Committee on Economic Development and chair of the House Republican Task Force on State Reorganization.

Celeste was preceded in death by her husband of 68 years, U.S. District Judge William D. Stiehl; her parents, George Sullivan and Celeste (née Schramm) Sullivan; two brothers, Daniel Sullivan, M.D., and George Harold ("Jim") Sullivan, M.D.,; and a sister, Ann Page Campbell.

She is survived by her children, William D. (Mary) Stiehl, Jr. and Susan M. (Bruce) Guthrie; grandchildren Kathryn (Clay) Frauenfelder, Christina (John Austin) Stiehl, William Guthrie, and Andrew Guthrie; great-granddaughter Gretchen Frauenfelder; sister Joan Reilly; and brother, Frances ("Bud") Sullivan, M.D. She will be missed dearly.

Visitation will be from 9:00 am to 10:30 am on Monday, April 6, 2026, at First United Presbyterian Church, 1303 Royal Heights Road, Belleville, IL. Funeral services will follow at 10:30 am with the Rev. Robert J. Dyer presiding. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to First United Presbyterian Church or the Greater East St. Louis Community Fund (estlfund.org) for the Judge William D. Stiehl scholarship program.