Jean J. “Mimi” Ely, age 95, of Bryan, Ohio, passed away at 3:35 P.M. on Thursday, December 30, 2021, at SKLD-Bryan. Jean was a 1944 graduate of Bryan High School and was a devoted homemaker.
She also worked along with her husband, Ralph, at R J Ely Wayside Furniture in Bryan until their retirement in 1977. She was a member of First Presbyterian Church, Bryan, where she enjoyed singing in the choir.
She was a senior member of Beta Sigma Phi since 1962. Mimi loved crafting, was an outstanding cook, and enjoyed spending time with her family.
She loved to travel and enjoyed getting cards that she read over and over and never discarded so that she could read them again.
She was also an avid reader of the Bible and cookbooks, loved pictures of cardinals, and was a devoted fan of the Detroit Tigers and The Ohio State Buckeyes.
A lover of music, she was a drummer and especially loved the beat of rock and roll. She was also a proud Navy wife, mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother.
Jean J. Ely was born on October 19, 1926, in Bryan, Ohio, the daughter of Herbert C. and Effie Ethel (Peyton) Salsbury. She married Ralph J. Ely on May 5, 1946, in Bryan and he preceded her in death on July 7, 2011.
Survivors include two sons, Roger H. (Susan) of Warrenton, North Carolina, and Jon R. (Lori), of Bryan; one daughter, Lorraine S. (Shawn) Zuver, of Findlay, Ohio; five grandchildren, Preston (Ashley) Ely, Johanna Ely, Lauren Ely, Megan (Jeremy) Hall, and Suzanne Zuver; and eleven great-grandchildren.
She was also preceded in death by her parents; an infant son, Bradley J.; a granddaughter, Malorie Jean Ely Hildebrandt; a great-granddaughter, Gracie Hall; two brothers, Gale and Cleland Salsbury; and two sisters, Helen Wheeler and Wanda Lougheed.
Memorial services will be held on Friday, January 7, 2022, at 12:00 P.M. in the Krill Funeral Home, 860 West Mulberry Street, Bryan, with Pastor Jeff Sheldon officiating. Visitation will be held for one hour prior to the service, beginning at 11:00 A.M., in the Krill Funeral Home, Bryan. Private burial will be in Floral Grove Cemetery, West Unity, Ohio.
Memorials may be made to First Presbyterian Church, Bryan.