Eleanor Jane (DeLong) Wiedie lost her battle with dementia and heart failure on 2/17/2020 just a week prior to her 90th birthday. She often told stories about her happy childhood growing up in Upper Arlington, Ohio just outside of Columbus with her brother, sister and beloved pets.She adored her mother and admired her father for his work as an author, entomologist and professor for The Ohio State University. A bit of a self-professed tomboy, she loved playing outside with her brother and his friends who nicknamed her Boney-O-Sissyface!
Eleanor attended Ohio Wesleyan University where she majored in English, was member of Kappa Alpha Theta and met the love of her life, David Wiedie, to whom she was married for fifty years. Shortly after she earned her BA, Eleanor followed David to Death Valley, CA where he served as an Army Officer during the Korean war. They later settled in Akron, Ohio. She was a school teacher for a brief time but later devoted her life to raising her two children, David and Susan. Eleanor loved helping people. She was always involved in the local schools, served as a Girl Scout Leader, was a member of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, a volunteer at the Akron Children’s Home and at the New and Nearly New shop benefiting Akron Children’s Hospital in addition to Stan Hywet Hall and Gardens. She remained active as a Kappa Alpha Theta alumna, was a member of Witan and the Women’s Auxiliary Board.
During retirement, Eleanor and her husband enjoyed travel abroad and extended vacations in St. Simon’s Island Georgia. They shared a love of golf and also attended the Masters tournament every year. She enjoyed many hobbies but one that was close to her heart was researching her family’s history. Eleanor spent years tracing her genealogy back to the 1700’s. Although miles separated them, Eleanor remained very close to her brother, sister and their families. They corresponded regularly and she treasured time spent with her sister when they traveled to England.
A lifelong resident of Ohio, Eleanor relocated to Frisco, Texas to be near her daughter’s family following the death of her husband in 2002. She was a tremendous help to two working parents and was actively involved in raising their children who will miss her dearly. She loved taking them to see the trains or to the library when they were young. She never missed a soccer, baseball or football game. It was in Texas where she lived out the remainder of her days.
Eleanor was preceded in death by her parents, Fanny and Dwight DeLong, her husband, David Arthur Wiedie and her son, David Alan Wiedie. She is survived by her brother, George DeLong and his wife Rose (Arnold, MD), her sister Joan (DeLong) Snouffer (Port St. Lucie, Florida), her brother-in-law Alan Wiedie and his wife Gretchen (Bolton, CT), her daughter Susan (Wiedie) Gregson, Susan’s husband Shannon and their two children, J.D. and Katy (Frisco, Texas), grandchildren Rob Wiedie (Los Angeles, CA), Kate (Wiedie) Durante and her husband Joe (Charlotte, SC), Jack Wiedie (Denver, CO) and their mother, Nancy (Jaeger) Wiedie (Hudson, OH) and David Alan’s widow Beth Hemmelgarn (Akron, OH) in addition to ten nieces, nephews and their children.
A memorial service will be held in Ohio and announced at a later date (please email Susan at [email protected] to be informed of arrangements). Eleanor’s ashes will be spread next to her husband’s in the rose garden at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, Akron, OH. In lieu of flowers, please make donations in her name to Akron Children’s Hospital, Stan Hywet Hall & Gardens (Akron, OH), The American Heart Association or the Dementia Society of America.
Eleanor will always be remembered as a happy, kind soul who loved everyone she met. She always had a smile on her face and enjoyed being around people, even as dementia stole her memory and ability to communicate. She lived a life of love and service to others. “As a well spent day brings happy sleep, so as life well used brings happy death” (Leonardo Da Vinci).
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