Donna Yelton

Donna Jean “Jeanie” (Bishop) Yelton, 80, of Bellefontaine, passed away at 12:27 a.m. on Thursday, March 31, 2016 at Miami Valley Hospital in Dayton. She was born in Centerburg, Ohio on July 12, 1935 to the late John and Iva (Rice) Bishop. On April 17, 1954 she married Robert Lewis Yelton and he preceded her in death, August 4, 1996.

She was also preceded in death by her four sons, John Yelton, Bill Yelton, Joseph Yelton and Jeff Yelton; a granddaughter, Christina Yelton; and daughter-in-law, Jane Yelton.

Jeanie is survived by her children, Mike Yelton of Bellefontaine, Rick (Glenna Lee) Yelton of Bellefontaine, Jim (Emily) Yelton of Rushsylvania, Charley Yelton of Bellefontaine, and Patti (Mark) Osborne of DeGraff; grandchildren, J Yelton, Brad (Ceci) Yelton, Ben Yelton, Kyle Yelton, Larrilyn Yelton, April Yelton, Misty Yelton, Tina (Brandon) Rutherford, Adam Yelton, Lee (Stacy) Yelton, and Ethan Yelton, all of Bellefontaine, Rob (Jaime) Yelton of Quincy, Jeremy (Nikki) Yelton of East Liberty, Jonathon Yelton of Champaign, Illinois, Sammy Yelton of Rushsylvania, Amanda (Rick) Crumm of Zanesfield, Conor Osborne and Caitlin Osborne of DeGraff; 25 great grandchildren; 1 great-great grandchild; her sisters, Shirley (Gary) Wellmeier of Urbana, Betty (Bill) Hartley of DeGraff, Martha (Bill) Pence of Maplewood, Linda (John) Jones of Summerfield, Florida, and Joy (Jerry) Arnett of Quincy; a brother, Johnny (Chris) Bishop of Richwood; and numerous nieces and nephews.

Jeanie was a member of Kingdom Hall of Jehovah’s Witnesses in Bellefontaine. She was a devoted wife, mother, and grandmother, who had a huge heart with a strong, loving, compassionate, and positive attitude. She had lung cancer in 1985 and was stubborn enough to beat it for all these years. Jeanie raised many boys from town by making huge meals from scratch and welcoming whoever needed a meal into her home and she was not afraid to put them to work either. She had a love for horses and fishing with many trips to Lake Erie with Bob and the boys. Jeanie was known for making beautiful wedding cakes and giving them as wedding gifts to many couples throughout the years. She was also a devoted employee of the Red Lantern Restaurant for many years. Jeanie was especially a great role model for her only daughter and her many beautiful granddaughters. She will be greatly missed by those she touched.

Pastor Tony Coy will officiate a funeral service at 11 a.m. on Monday, April 4, 2016 at the Eichholtz Daring & Sanford Funeral Home, 321 N. Main Street, Bellefontaine. Visitation will be Sunday, April 3, 2016 from 2 - 6 p.m. at the funeral home. Burial will be in Huntsville Cemetery.

Funeral arrangements are in care of the Eichholtz Daring & Sanford Funeral Home in Bellefontaine.

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