Esther Raffa

She was born in Yellow Creek Township, Wellsville, on Dec. 16, 1935, to the late Fred and Ollie Woodrow, and was sister of the late Doris Woodrow Brown and the late James L. Woodrow.

In 1948, she became a member of Oak Ridge Presbyterian Church. Esther was a student at Fairview School, 16 School and a 1954 graduate of Wellsville High School.

After high school, Esther was employed at Central Federal Savings and Loan in Wellsville. One day while she was walking the bank mail to the post office, a young man asked if she needed a ride. That ride led to Esther’s courtship and marriage to the late Donald L. Raffa, whom she married April 20, 1958, at Oak Ridge Presbyterian Church.

Esther retired from the Austintown School System after 22 years of service. She enjoyed cooking, sewing, gardening, traveling (nearly all USA states and British Columbia) and watching Cleveland baseball.

Esther is survived by a daughter and son, Steven (Barb); grandson, Michael (Kristen) and their daughter, Joelle Lynn; granddaughter, Ashley (Chris), and their daughter, Ashley Olivia; granddaughter, Megan (Joe), and their children, Angelo and Frankie Marie; along with many nieces and nephews.

Funeral services were held Tuesday, June 13, 2023, at Higgins-Reardon Funeral Homes, Jackson-Milton Chapel, 439 S. Salem-Warren Road, North Jackson, OH 44451, 330 538-9988.