She was born on January 14, 1936, in Lucas, Ohio, to Hollie and Olive (Snow) Yarnell. She graduated from Lucas High School in 1954 and headed to Columbus where she earned a Business Certificate. She worked at the American Red Cross in downtown Columbus. Nita then moved to Cleveland where she lived for a couple of years and worked in the downtown area for a magazine business office.
Moving to Mansfield, she worked at Mansfield Telephone Company/United Telephone/Sprint where she held several positions throughout her 36+ years of service, making lifelong friends. She retired in 1994. After retiring from Sprint, she enjoyed traveling with her dear friends, traveling around the country. They were very precious moments for Nita. A group of former co-workers met frequently for lunch to catch up. She was also fortunate enough to meet with her school friends for many years to do the same. Nita always enjoyed those lunch dates.
For many years Nita was a member of the First Church of God, now Avenue Church, in Ontario. She served on the funeral dinner committee, helping to serve, set up and clean up, Upward Basketball, and as a greeter. She remained in close contact with the many friends she made there.
Nita loved working in her yard, keeping her lawn and flowers meticulous. She was once told “I bet your neighbors don’t like you too much because of how you always want your yard to be just so!” She also had a passion for reaching out to people through her cards, letters and notes adorned with stickers and sometimes confetti. Nita documented what stationery, cards, stickers, return address labels, etc. she sent to avoid repeating to the same person! This was her way of letting people know she was thinking of and praying for them.
She had a special fondness for animals and could not understand animal abuse, cruelty, and neglect. Nita had many special pets throughout the years including Sandy, Babe, Suzy, Pal, Spanky, Daisy, Boots, Cat, Chloe, Gigi, and especially her shadow and best buddy, Missy Jo. What a special bond they shared.
She loved sports, specifically the Cleveland Indians (to her, the Guardians will always be the Indians), Browns, Cavaliers, and oh those Buckeyes. After moving to Columbus, she also became a fan of the Blue Jackets. The summer and winter Olympics were always special events as well.
Nita is survived by her daughter, Pam Rollins and son, Jeff Morey (whom she adored and was so thankful for and to), both in the Columbus area. In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by her brothers, Clarence Merle “Cocky” Milligan and Bill Yarnell; sisters, Wreta Lincoln and Caroline “Corky” Harvey; brothers-in-law, Cliff Lincoln and Bernard Harvey; and sister-in-law, Helen Yarnell.
The funeral service will be held at 12:00 p.m. on Thursday, July 3, 2025, at Wappner Funeral Directors and Crematory-Mansfield, 98 S. Diamond Street. Visitation will begin at 11:00 a.m. Graveside services will follow in Mansfield Cemetery.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made in Nita’s memory to any Humane Society, Second Chance Dog Rescue Mansfield or Hospice of Central Ohio.
