Claire Cloud worked at The Legal Aid Society of Cleveland for nine years, representing clients in family law and housing cases. She passed away after a battle with cancer last month at the age of 46. She loved her clients, her colleagues and Legal Aid. She had deep respect for her fellow members of the bar. She was independent in all things, confident and capable, principled, and reliable.
A graduate of Cleveland Marshall College of Law, she worked at Legal Aid for nearly her entire legal career. Prior to law school, she had a diverse background. She served in the military as a radar instructor. She was a cosmetologist. She taught paralegal studies.
She loved Hawaii and the time that she spent there as a college student. Her office in Legal Aid's Painesville Office was an island paradise. There was a colorful calendar with photos of ocean sunsets. And she framed 1950's tourist posters featuring hula dancers who were wearing leis and crowns of flowers, swaying in grass skirts under palm trees in the moonlight. It was serene. It felt happy. It was fun. It was Claire.
Claire's other love was her dogs. They were rescues and she made up for their abandonment and deprivation by spoiling them. The day before she died she rewrote her epitaph. She wanted it to say, ""¦out walking my dog."
Her friends at Legal Aid will miss her.
By Marley Eiger, Senior Attorney at Legal Aid