Wanda Carolyn Cross

STOW - Wanda Carolyn Cross, 87, of Stow, Ohio, went to be with her heavenly Father on January 19, 2024.

Born in Akron, Ohio, she was a lifelong resident of Stow and a member of Stow Alliance Fellowship. She was graduated from Stow High School in 1954 and earned her LPN license in 1984. She retired from the Hudson Elms, where she had worked for 25 years.

She was preceded in death by her first husband of 53 years, Robert E. Cross, in 2009; her second husband, Kenneth R. Myers, in 2020; her sisters, Loreen Moore and Barbara Shaffer. She is survived by her daughters, Carolyn (Ron) Wallie, of Braceville, Ohio; Robin (Tom) Halsey, of Peoria, Illinois; Jennifer Beale of Stow, Ohio; Susan (Greg) Payne, of Hudson, Ohio; Lisa (Tom) Vogt, of Columbus, Ohio; Debbie (Bruce) Carpenter, of Minerva, Ohio; and Laurie Cross of Stow, Ohio, as well as 25 grandchildren, and ten great-grandchildren.

Wanda had many interests throughout her life, and most of them involved her family. She enjoyed playing sports, including softball and croquet in the back yard, and badminton and volleyball in the front yard. Another interest was gardening. The whole family helped in the planting of a huge vegetable garden, and what was not consumed in meals became products to sell. This was before “farmer’s markets” were common. Wanda taught her daughters from a young age to put tomatoes, squash, and peppers in a basket and offer them for sale to the neighbors on King Drive. Additionally, she loved to cook and bake, and she excelled at both, teaching her daughters the tricks of the trade as they worked together to prepare special meals, (especially Sunday dinners), and bake bread, cookies, pies, and cakes (mostly from scratch). Occasional treats might involve a trip in the old VW bus to Stoddard’s for a cone of their homemade custard. Relaxation for Wanda meant watching baseball and basketball or old movies and shows on television, and in her later years, she often stayed up late to watch Gunsmoke or the Turner Classic movies.

Most important of all, she taught her daughters the importance of going to church and learning how to have a relationship with God, and her example inspired her family to love and serve the Lord Jesus Christ.

There will be no calling hours. A private memorial service for the family will be held. Burial at North Lawn Cemetery.