Ramona Allene Gray

I’m honored to have the opportunity to tell you about my dear, sweet, fierce, loyal, compassionate, brilliant, talented Mom. She is so special to all of us here and a far. We are all the better for having known her and Heaven is the richer for her going home.

Early Years

Ramona Allene Leatherman was born in 1934 in Mansfield, Ohio to Henry and Bertha Leatherman.

She was the first of 4 children to come - rounding out the beautiful Leatherman family. The next oldest was Nancy, then Douglas, then Paula. Early on in her life her parents moved to a farm outside of Mansfield. As Mom got older, she worked hard on the farm, feeding chickens, gathering eggs, milking their cow Bessie. She also told her younger sister Paula that she had a lot to do with her up-bringing since there was so much to do on the farm for her folks.

Mom’s family moved back into town a few years later where she attended Mansfield schools. Mom excelled at school all the way from grade school to College. She also had a beautiful singing voice and sang in multiple choirs over her life. She graduated from Mansfield Senior High in 1952 and then went on to college in Illinois with top grades.

College Years

Mom was an Elementary Education Major at Wheaton College and she was also the editor of the College Magazine called “Kodon”. She demonstrated early on how to be a multi-tasker. She worked part time at a diner in downtown Wheaton while keeping up with her classes and the magazine. Ramona met her husband William Leland Gray at Wheaton College. She was a freshman and he was a senior. Mom and Dad became engaged while she was still in college. My brother Doug has an image in his mind of Mom running up the Wheaton Tower in Blanchard Hall to ring the bell when she got engaged (as was tradition at Wheaton College). They were married at College Church, next to Wheaton College, right after Mom graduated in the spring of 1956. Soon after getting married they moved to Canada where Dad was working on his master’s degree at University of Toronto.

Ottawa, Canada

By May of 1957, Dad had accepted a job in Ottawa working for the Federal Government. Dad took care of the move while Mom went to stay with her parents in Ohio - since she was 9 months pregnant. Not long after giving birth they were able to return to Canada with their new baby Linda. Their first home in Ottawa was a small apartment over by Riverside Side Drive where they attended St Timothy’s Presbyterian Church. Just before Mark was born in 1960, they bought a house in Parkwood Hills. Paula was born in 1961 and Doug was born in 1968. Growing up in Parkwood Hills was a lot of fun.

Mom went to work as a schoolteacher soon after moving to Ottawa. Her first job was teaching in a one room schoolhouse – all grades – with a baby in the back of the room. If anyone could handle that, it was my mom. She went on to teach in other places including teaching Junior High at Hillel Academy. She split the day teaching all English subjects in a ½ day and then the Rabbi taught Hebrew subjects in the other ½ of the day.

During the 60’s my folks were approached to be part of a Presbyterian Church plant in Parkwood Hills. We started meeting in a Public-School Gymnasium until ground was broken for Parkwood Presbyterian Church. Mom and Dad were very active in the Church. It was a great church with a wonderful church family.

In the winter of 1971-1972, we moved to Amberwood Crescent in Country Place. It seemed like a long way out - but you got used to it. OTC buses went down our street daily connecting us with the city. Mom and Dad decided that it was time to downsize a few years ago. They moved to Briardale Cres near Merivale and Baseline. Dad wanted to do this while he was still able to handle all the work involved with a move. Their new place was fully functional on one level which was good for both in their later years.

Mom’s Interests

Mom was a true Renaissance woman. She was a jack of all trades and a master of many. She could make something out of nothing and in only a few minutes.

Mom was a ray of sunshine. Dad said that when he met Mom, she was so bright and cheery that he was immediately attracted to her. She made everything better just by being with her.

Mom loved to tell funny stories and recount stories about her grandchildren. We all knew what was going on with each of our families after talking to Mom. She was so proud of all of us.

Mom was so wise. She would patiently listen to all your problems and then always had practical advice on what you needed to do. We all called her on a regular basis – just to get grounded advice on so many topics.

Mom loved animals. She fed squirrels and birds in her backyard and she loved her cats. We had several cats over the years – Bisquit, Josie, Ginger, Daisy and Lily Rose – all equally loved with a passion.

Mom was an excellent cook. We will all miss her wonderful home cooked meals. She would whip up meals without recipes – with nothing precisely measured just a "pinch of this and a thwack of that". Mom grew up learning Pennsylvania Dutch cooking and her specialty was pie. Anyone who has had Mom’s pie knows this to be true. She has also been known by some as “The House of Pie”. We will miss weekends with her fresh cinnamon rolls for breakfast and home-made pizza for supper, New Year’s Day pork and sauerkraut, Christmas Eve Tortiere and the smell of the Sunday dinner in the oven - coming home after church.

Mom was an excellent gardener. We have all looked to her for guidance with our own yards. She knew so much about how a garden would change over the seasons and always look good. This past summer I know she enjoyed sitting on her deck and watching her cat playing in her beautiful perennial garden.

Mom had mastered the art of refinishing furniture and helped all of us with our own homes. She had a great eye for decorating and could make a room look beautiful with just rearranging things. The next day after she would come to visit, my house was completely rearranged for the better - and you would say “now why didn’t I think of that – it’s brilliant”.

Mom was an avid painter. We have some of her paintings on display at the Funeral Home. We all love her work and proudly show off her paintings to our family and friends. She had an eye for the beautiful and the unique and was able to capture that on canvas.

Mom loved musicals and had an excellent singing voice. I loved hearing her sing around the house when we were growing up. I would say “sing more Mom – sing more”. Doug seems to have picked up her musical skill as you have seen today. Mom loved hearing Doug and Sue sing - as we all do.

Mom was so generous with other people and yet so frugal with herself. She donated her time, money, and belongings to many causes.

Mom was a master of time management and a force to be reckoned with. She could get more done in a few hours – than what would take the rest of us days.

It was said of her that she could run a Battleship – single handed.

Although she was a hard worker, she loved to be outside in the sunshine and she loved to swim. She swam 6 out of 7 days this past summer- right through September – in spite of Covid restrictions.

She was always there for all of us. She came to our homes and helped us with our families. She deeply loved all her grandchildren. She told me just a few weeks ago, even when she was fighting everything that had been thrown at her, that she prayed daily for everyone in her family.

Hopefully we are all stronger and wiser for having her in our lives and being blessed with such a wonderful mother and grandmother.

We will miss our mom until the day we go to join her in heaven.

Mom loved the Lord and would have heavy insightful discussions with her kids whenever she could.

We know Mom is in heaven today – making this parting a little easier for us.

Although our loss is staggering, we will meet her at the gate sooner than we all realize and we’ll have an eternity to spend with her.

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The Eulogy was followed by a memorial speech given by Owen Gray, grandson of Ramona.

Hi Everyone.

I don't exactly love talking in front of lots of people, so bear with me. I was thinking of not speaking but I realized I'd have the most brutal lecture waiting for me the day I get to meet Grandma in heaven. So I figured I'd share some of the lessons that she taught me.

Her lectures are an important part of what made her such an amazing person. She always had everyone's best interest in mind. And not just her family, if you met Ramona Gray, she found a way to make a positive influence in your life. Growing up in Ottawa I had the luxury of her being an enormous influence in my life. Her house was more of a home to me than anywhere I've ever lived. It was the most consistent home I ever knew, and it just felt like I was home every time I was with her. But more than that her house represented comfort, it represented trust, safety, love, and support.

I have so many memories of coming home from basketball practice, and I'd be exhausted, tired, stressed, and I'd have a whole bunch of schoolwork to do. And she'd be meeting me at the door with dinner ready, dessert ready. She'd used to get the TV guide and have circled all the shows that I might even be remotely interested in. Anything you could think of, she would have it ready for me. With that being said, I'd have a practice early next morning at 7 a.m., and she would be ready for that too.

She was always prepared and when I was there, her and I would hang out. Maybe watch a basketball game, maybe watch Hour of Power with Bobby Schuller, both my choices obviously. "Just 5 minutes" she'd say, "that's all I ask, I want you to hear what he has to say." And then in the meantime, she would ask me questions like, you know, "Do you have a girlfriend? Is she Christian? How are your marks?" The she would tell stories about everyone else too, she was always updating me. She would say, "By the way, did you know that Steven used to put ketchup on ice cream? Your cousin Mark, he's developing a new app, I don't know how it works but he's such a smart guy. Sammy's doing a master's program, I'm so proud of her. You know if you're ever hungry at school, your uncle Doug knows 100 different ways to make Kraft dinner. Your Aunt Sue she wrote a book, you should go check it out, it's really good. Or even guess what Laughlin did the other day."

I swear I could tell a story about all of you here, everyone listening. She was always telling stories, and because of those stories you know you could tell how much she cared about everyone. And I know she was proud because of the genuine smile she had on her face every time she told them.

That ability to connect everyone was also an important gift that defined her. Without having to talk to many of you, I felt like I knew what was going on in all of your lives because she would update me all the time, and it made me feel like I was a part of everyone's life. She brought people together which I think is such a special lesson. For all of us, she represented comfort, trust and that unmatched unconditional love and support. That's why I considered her house home for all of these years because she had a way of making you feel like you were at home, no matter where you were.

Just by being herself she made the world a better place. That gift never has to end because through all of us, we get to continue to make the world a better place, because of what she taught us all.

One of my favorite memories is every time I was in town, she would take me out for all-you-can-eat buffets. The only reason she would take me was 1) I would eat my money's worth but also 2) she loved buffets. And she was no slouch herself, I mean, she could eat! She'd used to love going to them, and you know,

she would go "I'm so full, but I have to get dessert" and would come back with every single dessert in the whole place!

My favorite memory is though her thanking me for spending time with her. I genuinely loved spending time with her because she was so caring and had such an amazing sense of humor, and I felt like I could trust her with anything because she would always be on your side. You know, I went for a walk with Paula a couple weeks ago and I told her I always thought it was amazing how, she can somehow be the funniest person in the room and also the most serious at the same time. And I think that is such an amazing gift.

Finally, Grandma helped make me the person I am today and be someone I can be proud of. And I'm still learning obviously, but she really made a blueprint for the person I still want to become, someone like her. Someone who represents everything that is Ramona Gray. She spent all of her life looking out for us and taking care of us. Now she has the chance to sit back, and relax and watch all of us make her proud. I know she's up there right now with Grandpa, looking at all of us with a big smile on her face, because she knows what she meant to all of us.

So, thank you Grandma for being the influence you were on my life. Thank you for making the world a little easier for all of us, but most importantly; thank you for making it a better world for everyone in it.

Thanks Grandma.

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Ramona stepped into heaven on March 9, 2021.

She passed peacefully at home, surrounded by her family, at the age of 87.

Ramona was born in Ohio and graduated from Mansfield Senior High in 1952.

She went on to attend Wheaton College in Illinois where she met her husband, William Gray. As a young couple, they moved to Ottawa where Bill served in the Federal Government.

She is preceded in death by her husband Bill, her parents, Henry and Bertha, her brother Douglas and her sister Nancy.

She is survived by her sister Paula Hildreth, her children Linda Schoer, Mark Gray (Courtney), Paula Zimmerman (Derek) and Douglas Gray (Susan), and her 12 grandchildren.

Ramona was an extremely talented and compassionate woman of faith who loved to paint and spend time in her garden.

She will be deeply missed by her family and friends.

Visitation at McEvoy-Shields Funeral Home 1411 Hunt Club Road on Wednesday March 17, 2021 from 12 till 1 pm followed by a funeral service in the chapel at 1 pm. Interment Capital Cemetery

Due to the pandemic protocols it will be necessary to call the Funeral Home at 613-737-7900 to register for the visitation and funeral. Masks must be worn and social distancing rules will apply.

In memoriam donations to the Ottawa Mission or the Ottawa Humane Society would be appreciated.