Iola Saunders

Iola will be remembered for her quiet strength, quick sense of humor, remarkable resilience, and lifelong devotion to her family.

She was preceded in death by her beloved husband of 55 years, Berlin B. Saunders Jr.; her sister, Elva Adkins; her brother, Dayton Thacker Jr.; her son, Patrick Saunders; and her grandson, Christopher Saunders.

She is survived by her children, Charlene (Larry) McClish, Kathleen (Robert) Young, Jeanine (Andy) Williams, Michael Saunders, Terrie (Gene) Lane, Tim Saunders (Vicki Crosswell), and Maureen (Glenn) DiGiacomo; and her grandchildren, Michael (Heather) Jinkins, Diane Jinkins-Moore (Danny Moore), Brian Young, Chelsey Young, Blair (Michelle) Williams, Brandi Saunders, Brock Saunders, Brooke Saunders, Nicholas Lane, Jonathan Lane, Patrick Lane, Tyler (Samantha) Saunders, Dalton (Andrea) Saunders, Joseph DiGiacomo (Jackie Greenfield), and Jeffrey (Jenna) DiGiacomo. Iola was a proud grandmother of 16, great-grandmother of 21, and great-great-grandmother of two. She is also survived by many nieces and nephews.

Born in Akron, Ohio, in 1927 to Charlotte Iola Dawson and Dayton Eugene Thacker, Iola grew up with the resilience and determination that would define her throughout her life. When she was about six years old, her father left the family, leaving her mother to raise Iola and her two younger siblings on her own. Coming of age during the difficult years of the Great Depression and World War II gave Iola a grit and resourcefulness that stayed with her for the rest of her life. As a young girl, she even contributed to the home-front war effort by collecting the foil linings from chewing gum wrappers to turn in for recycling.

Iola grew up in Miami, Florida, and attended Edison High School, where she was an award-winning 4-H student recognized for her sewing. She earned a scholarship to the University of Florida, but wartime gas shortages made attending impossible. Never one to be easily deterred, she instead enrolled at Barry College, now Barry University, traveling to school by public transportation. She helped offset the cost of her tuition by bussing tables in the dining hall and also worked as a switchboard operator for the telephone company.

In 1946, Iola met her future husband, Berlin Saunders, on a blind date arranged by his sister. They married in 1947 and soon bought their first home with the help of the GI Bill, with a monthly mortgage payment of just $50. That same year, Iola graduated from Barry College with a degree in Home Economics just six months after the birth of their first child. Seven more children followed, filling their home and their lives.

Even while raising eight children, Iola remained deeply involved in civic, academic, and family life. She served as Alumnae President for Barry College and as a Girl Scout leader, while somehow still finding time for an impressive array of creative pursuits. She mastered wallpapering and paneling, crocheted and made hooked rugs, decorated, hosted Bunco, and even sewed matching Easter outfits for all eight of her children. She also created a famous pumpkin bread recipe—although some family members still insist it was banana bread—that has remained a family tradition for three generations.

And then there was coffee... Iola loved it deeply and was always ready for a cup, whether over conversation, at the kitchen table, or simply as part of the rhythm of the day. The first big, glorious sip was often followed by her familiar and satisfied “num-num”. And to some of her grandchildren, she was affectionately known throughout childhood as “Coffee Grandma”.

Family adventures became another important part of life. In 1965, Iola and Berlin began what would become decades of camping trips, starting with tents, eight children piled into a station wagon, and a homemade “dome” Berlin built for the top of the car. That first adventure launched a family tradition that continued through many summers and well into Iola and Berlin’s later years.

In 1972, Iola and Berlin moved their family to Satellite Beach, Florida, where they purchased their dream home on the water. It became the heart of the family for more than five decades and remained Iola’s home until just six months before her passing.

Once her youngest child had started school, Iola returned to another calling she loved: teaching. She began working in the Miami-Dade school system and, following the family’s move to Brevard County, transferred to Johnson Junior High in Melbourne in 1974. She went on to teach Home Economics and Life Sciences for the next 20 years, touching the lives of generations of students before retiring.

Retirement only gave Iola more time for adventure. She and Berlin continued camping on a grander scale with the HI-Loafer Camping Group. Their travels took them across the country and beyond, including Yellowstone, the Grand Tetons, Alaska, and Hawaii. After Berlin passed away, Iola continued traveling with many of those same friends in her Class B motorhome, remaining on the road and embracing new adventures well into her 90th year.

Of all that Iola accomplished in her 99 years, however, her greatest source of pride and joy was always her eight children. Each followed a different path and built a life of his or her own, but they all shared the strong work ethic and determination their mother had modeled for them. Iola was immensely proud of each of them and was known to boast, with characteristic confidence, that there wasn’t “a bad one in the bunch.”

That family grew across generations, and it is perhaps Iola’s greatest legacy. Her strength, humor, independence, resourcefulness, and fierce love of family live on through her children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and great-great-grandchildren.

After 99 remarkable years, Iola leaves behind a family shaped profoundly by the life she lived and the example she set. She will be deeply missed and fondly remembered by all who knew and loved her.

Memorial donations in lieu of flowers may be made to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.