Lois Ann Yanney died July 13, 2024 at age 94 in Savoy, Illinois. She lived a long, full life and blessed all who met her with her pleasant loving nature, singing, and sense of humor.
Born as Lois Ann Cross on Oct 30, 1929 in Perry, New York, she grew up with her brother David, sister Thelma, and cousin Barbara; all raised by her mother Marjorie Cross with help from Aunt Dorothy (Dot), Uncle Eddie, and Marjorie’s mother Edith. She enjoyed hikes and picnics at Letchworth Park and Silver Lake near Perry. She attended first and second grade in a one-room school house out in the country by Silver Lake. She attended Perry School for school years 3-12, graduating early in 1946 since she had completed all the classes available. The family only had enough money to send one child to university, so David was sent. He earned a PhD and taught at the college level.
As a child born at the beginning of the Great Depression, Lois began work at an early age. While still a child herself, she cared for the many children of a neighbor family, sometimes overnight. Before the age of 16, she began work at a local ice cream shop, serving customers and preparing food.
Lois was swept off her feet and eloped with William Strome Yanney in 1950, narrowly missing her mother at the train station on her way out of town. Lois birthed seven children in quick succession, living the life of a stay at home military wife. When Bill shipped overseas, Lois remained on base with seven children under the age of 10. This necessitated that she be taught to drive. She once commented that it was the first time in her life that she knew freedom. They had another daughter seven years later, and Lois began part-time employment, took classes in the evenings, and fulfilled her role as a minister’s wife. First as a military family and later following Bill’s callings as a minister, the family moved every few years, living in New Jersey, New York, Indiana, Illinois, and Ohio.
Lois began full-time employment in the office of a vending machine company in Ohio as her children grew up and the oldest began to leave home. In Indiana, Lois worked as many as three jobs simultaneously – full time days, part time evenings and weekends – as a single mom raising her youngest two daughters. She accepted what she could not change, worked long hours without complaint, loved unconditionally, and found joy in the company of her children and her pets. After all her children left home, she settled near her oldest kids in Urbana and worked for UIUC until she retired at age 70. Following her retirement, she walked twice a day at Meadowbrook Park for as long as she was able. Travel included trips to visit new grandchildren, to attend weddings and graduations, and to revisit her childhood stomping grounds. She also volunteered as a test subject for several university research projects, learning to quilt and play video games. Support from her children living in Urbana and Champaign allowed her to continue living independently even as Alzheimer’s began to take her memories away. Though her memories faded, she continued to be the same kind, caring, loving, independent, stubborn individual as she was earlier in life.
One of her children’s favorite memories is their young, beautiful Mother singing to them at bedtime, Three Little Fishies. Lois remembered this song until her last day. Lois’s rendition of this song, “Down in the meadow in the ittie bitty pool, swam the three little fishies and a mama fishie too. ‘Swim’ said the mama fishie, ‘Swim if you can’, and they swam and they swam right over the…(wait for it)…dam.” Sometimes dam would be whispered, sometimes emphasized for the humor, with an added “Boo-hoo”.
Lois loved cats and dogs, with much love given to her childhood dog Zipper, our family cocker spaniel Spooky, her Husky Shadow, and many, many cats.
Lois is preceded in death by her mother Marjorie Cross, her father Alphonso, her sister Thelma, her brother David, and our father William. She is survived by all her children, her six daughters Barbara, Joan, Janet, Sky, Beverly, and Donna, two sons William and Matthew, son-in laws Louis and Myron, daughters-in-law Paula and Debbie, 11 grandchildren (Evan, William, Joseph, April, Melinda, Timothy, Benjamin, Melanie, Wiley, Cara, and Jacob), 6 great grandchildren (Layla, Carly, Amelia, Kiera, Logan, and Oliver), her brother’s widow Jan and son Jason, her sister’s daughter Susan, and Susan’s son Ben.
In her last months of life, Mom received care at Accolade Health Care of Savoy and later at Savoy Place Memory Care, with help from Transitions Care (Hospice). Many precious memories were made and loving times spent with her these last 6 months during visits with her children and their spouses. Her daughter Janet was blessed to hold her mother during her last moments, as Lois passed on to her Heavenly home.
Condolences may be offered at Renner-Wikoff Chapel & Crematory.