Obituary of Ross Blakeslee Schlernitzauer

Ross Blakeslee Schlernitzauer died on April 20, 2020, of extreme old age. She was born December 1, 1913, in New Haven, Connecticut, and made her first trip to Rockledge when she was two months old. Except for the years she was in school, she and her brother and sister wintered with their parents and grandparents in Rockledge. Interestingly, when she was three, a fish bone lodged in her throat and she was taken to Dr. Bob Schlernitzauer to have the bone removed. He became her father-in-law after she met and married Robert L. Schlernitzauer in 1936.

She was active in many civic organizations but was particularly involved with Wuesthoff Hospital, where she was President of the Auxiliary for several years and was the first woman to serve on the Board of Trustees. She managed the Pink Shelf for the auxiliary for many years and the shop was renowned for its great inventory. She was a dedicated and active member of St. Mark’s Episcopal Church, where she taught the Sunday School kindergarten class for thirty years. She and her husband owned and operated Pioneer-Seminole Groves, where she was instrumental in the development of the mail order business.

As a young woman she was an accomplished horsewoman and she also enjoyed playing golf. She adored baseball and was the official scorekeeper for the Yale team when she was a teenager. She assisted her husband in coaching his Little League Team, until she decided to coach a Little League Team of her own. She was an avid sailor and sailed until she was well into her nineties. She loved knitting and needlepoint and she stitched the altar rail kneelers at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church.

She was predeceased by her husband, Bobby, in 1986, her parents, Martha and Albert Blakeslee, her brothers Wells Blakeslee and Dick Blakeslee, and her sister Peggy Doty She is survived by her daughters, Susan Blakeslee of Cocoa and Linda Hardee of Naples, FL, her grandchildren Jennings Wright, Blake Gable, and Wells Gable, 6 great-grandchildren, 1 great-great-grandchild, seven nieces and nephews, and numerous dear friends, whom she loved.

Memorials may be made in her honor to St. Mark’s Episcopal Church, the Sharing Center of Central Brevard, or Vitas Community Connection..

Her family is extremely grateful to the staff of Sonata Viera and Vitas Healthcare for their gentle care of her during the time of the Coronavirus.

A memorial service will be held at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church when her loved ones can be socially together again.