Eleanor Louise Yorio

Eleanor (Ellie) Yorio (nee Wozniak) died peacefully on September 27, 2023, at home in Charlotte, surrounded by her family. She was ninety-two. She is survived by her five children: Fran Jr. (Karen), Jim (Debbie), Jo Anne Sullivan (Kevin), Mary Ellen Lyghtel (Ed) and Kathy Wyatt (Andy), along with seventeen grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren.

She is now reunited with her husband of 68 years, Fran, who passed away exactly two months prior on July 27. She is also predeceased by her parents, Harriet and John Wozniak; sister, Alice Dixon; and granddaughter, Anne Sullivan.

Ellie was born on May 23, 1931, in Buffalo, NY. She graduated from Kensington High School, where she excelled in academics and was selected as senior class valedictorian. She went on to earn an Associate of Business degree from Bryant & Stratton College in Buffalo. She worked as an administrative assistant at Bell Aircraft Corp., Studebaker Corp. and Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Beane before taking on the most challenging job – parenting five children.

During her husband Fran’s four-decade career with John Hancock Mutual Life Insurance Co., the couple lived in Buffalo, NY, Olean, NY, Erie, PA and South Bend, IN, before retiring to Florida in 1989.

Ellie was a devoted wife and mother with many culinary, artistic and musical talents. Family always came first, as evidenced by the countless hours she spent as a Girl Scouts leader, Cub Scouts den mother, volunteer school librarian, shuttling kids to various sporting events and all-around supporter and encourager of her husband and children. As her children grew and she had more time for other causes, she volunteered with the Christ Child Society, Junior League and later, the General Federation of Women’s Clubs of Florida.

During their South Bend years, Ellie’s lifelong interest in art – and meticulous organizational skills – prepared her for great success as Education and Membership Coordinator at the South Bend Art Center, now known as the South Bend Museum of Art.

She was also a student at the Art Center and soon became an accomplished painter. She continued taking art lessons well into her eighties and painted into her nineties - creating dozens of beautiful works of art, an incredible legacy her children and grandchildren now cherish.

A lifelong learner, Ellie also enrolled in education courses in computer basics and interior design in the 1980s. In 1993, she completed an educational program in the decorative arts from the prestigious New York School of Interior Design.

Fran and Ellie retired to Lake Placid, FL, in 1989. They also lived in Summerfield, FL, for several years before moving to Greenville, SC, in 2015 and Charlotte, NC, in 2018.

Ellie was not only a loving wife and mother but an incredible grandmother, great-grandmother, neighbor and friend. She will be remembered most for her strong faith and love for her family.

A Funeral Mass will take place at 11 a.m. on November 9, 2023, at St. Gabriel Catholic Church, 3016 Providence Rd., Charlotte, NC, 28211, followed by a graveside service at Salisbury National Cemetery in Salisbury, NC, where she will rest eternally with her husband.

In lieu of flowers, the family has requested donations to the South Bend Museum of Art at southbendart.org.