Virginia Wood

Virginia "Jinny" Lee Wood, 85, of Celina, Ohio, formerly of Rockford, passed away at 5:05 p.m., Thursday, February 19, 2015, at the Otterbein St. Marys Senior Lifestyle Community in St. Marys, Ohio. She was born on July 24, 1929, in Cincinnati, Ohio, to Joseph James and Virginia (Blasing) Meyer. Jinny graduated from St. Marys Memorial High School in 1947, and attended Wright State University in Celina, Ohio. Jinny was a journalist for the St. Marys Evening Leader and also for the Bluffton News Banner, in Bluffton, Indiana. She lived in Tupelo, Mississippi for 20 years, and while there, worked at the Tupelo Women's Shelter and at Olan Mills Photography Studio, where she won top sales awards several years. Upon moving back to the area, she became a member of the Ft. Recovery Church of Christ. She was a founding member of the Grand Lake Patriots in Celina, and also was a founding member of the Celina Civic Theater. She was active in the Rockford Variety Shows, and loved performing at the Chatt Farmers Picnic with her three daughters. She sang at numerous nursing homes in the area as well as in Mississippi while she lived there. Dixie and Dolly, her Maltese dogs, were the joy of her life in her later years, giving her much companionship. She loved spending time with her grandchildren and great-grandchildren also, and getting together with her daughters was a joy. Surviving are three daughters: Sheila (Mark Linn) Baltzell of Celina, Ohio; Holly P. Wood (Paul) Pabis of Rehoboth, Massachusettes; and Colleen (Wally) O'Steen of Huntsville, Alabama. Eight grandchildren survive: Christopher (Leslie) Baltzell, Celina, Ohio; Scott (Carianne) Baltzell, Mansfield, Ohio; Dr. Thomas (Dr. Ann) Baltzell, Dublin, Ohio; Jonathan Pabis and Stephanie Pabis, both of Rehoboth, Massachusettes; Haley O'Steen, Rosalind O'Steen, and Claire O'Steen, all of Huntsville, Alabama. In addition to her granchildren are eight great-grandchildren: Joe, Dylan, Grace, Alexander, Ava, Samuel, Jacob, and Lydia Baltzell. Preceding Virginia in 1998 was her former husband and friend, Duane R. Wood, her son-in-law, Larry Baltzell, and her brother James Meyer, and his wife Marcia Meyer. Services will be held on Tuesday, February 24, 2015, at 10:00 A.M. at Ketcham-Ripley Funeral Home in Rockford. Burial will follow at Riverside Cemetery, Rockford. Friends may call on Monday at the funeral home from 4:00-8:00 P.M. and on Tuesday, one hour prior to the service. Memorials may be directed to the Grand Lake Patriots.