Willene M. Held, age 88, of Bryan, Ohio, passed away at 2:47 P.M. on Wednesday, February 21, 2018, in her home, surrounded by her family, after an extended illness. Mrs. Held was a 1947 graduate of Edon High School and after raising her family she did home care for elderly in the area. She was a member of St. Patrick Catholic Church in Bryan and formerly was a member of St. Joseph Catholic Church in Blakeslee, Ohio, where she was past president of the Rosary Altar Society. She also enjoyed knitting, cooking, playing cards and dominos and especially enjoyed following her husband in his professional baseball career, traveling to forty states in his thirteen-year career, and in later years watching her sons and grandchildren playing baseball and basketball. Willene had a pleasant personality and was a friend to all.
Willene M. Held was born on July 11, 1929, in Montpelier, Ohio, the daughter of Irvin and Clela (Bauer) Fox. She married Melvin “Mel” Held on October 29, 1949, in Blakeslee and he survives. Surviving in addition to her husband are two sons, Stephen (Mary Lou) Held, of Montpelier, and Thomas (Deanne) Held, of Defiance, Ohio; five grandchildren, Casey (Monica) Held, Shaylee (David) Uscilowski and Chayse, Cassidy and Calvin Held; seven great-grandchildren; and one sister, Annabelle Martin, of Bryan. She was preceded in death by two brothers, Carmen and Donald Fox; three sisters, her twin, Pauline Herman, Ruth Walz and Mary McClellan; and one granddaughter, Mattie Rae Held.
Visitation will be held on Sunday, February 25, 2018, from 4:00-8:00 P.M. in the Krill Funeral Home, 860 West Mulberry Street, Bryan, followed by recitation of the rosary at 8:00 P.M. Services will be held on Monday, February 26, 2018, at 10:30 A.M. in St. Patrick Catholic Church with Reverend Frederick Duschl officiating. Interment will follow in St. Joseph Catholic Cemetery, Blakeslee.
Memorials are requested to St. Patrick Catholic Church, St. Joseph Catholic Church, Community Health Professionals Hospice Care or the Alzheimer’s Association. To sign the online register or to send condolences, please visit www.krillfuneralservice.com.