Passed away on Friday, December 26th, 2025.
Beloved mother of Debbie (Mike) Watts, Jackie (Gary) Grist, and Dennis Day; loving grandmother of Nathan (Michaela) Watts, Gina (Frank) Hankins, Garin (Ashley) Grist, Danny Day, and Annie (Zach) Neislein; adoring great grandmother of Eva and Dylan Hankins, Gemma and Apollo Grist, and Aurora and Estelle Neislein; dearest daughter of the late Orville and Mildred Sitzes; dear sister of Maryann (the late Bob) Bohnenn and the late Jack “Dink” (Judy) Sitzes and Jerry (survived by Jan) Sitzes; our dear aunt, great aunt, cousin, and friend.
In lieu of flowers, contributions made to the American Cancer Society or to the American Heart Association are greatly appreciated.
Celebration of Life on Saturday, January 10, 12 NOON until 3:00 p.m. at Freedom Church, 32 Meramec Valley Plaza, Valley Park, MO 63088.
I am so saddened to hear of EllaMaes passing. I can still hear her saying “you know” and that fabulous, contagious laugh she had! She was also a great story teller, and boy did she have some “stories”!! Boy did we have some good laughs with her!! I’ll always treasure our visits and our “girl trips” to Branson. Much love to you all.
Grandma‘s house was always our primary destination when traveling into St. Louis. The homebase where we hung out the whole time. I will forever remember her iconic Christmas Eve parties with the whole family, where we had meatballs for dinner and would sing happy birthday to Jesus. Grandma‘s house was such a comfort zone and it changed surprisingly little over all of these years. The cozy look and smell was always the same, she always had little candies sitting out ,and in my earlier years she would always have a soap opera playing on TV, and in the later years it was always the game show network. Whatever you do, don’t touch the thermostat! …just plan to sleep in your underwear on top of the sheets.
Love you forever, grandma
Beautiful tribute.
Blessings to you all as heaven has received your angel. Wishing all a blessed 2026 and precious memories of your loved one.
I loved Ella Mae! She always made you feel like a special guest when visiting. She used tablecloths, linen napkins and the good dishes. The perfect hostess. I worked with Ella in the 80s at the Marriott Hotel. She was the best gift shop manager we had. Ella was tough when she needed to be. My brother can attest to that. She always had a good story, made you feel at home and had the best backyard parties. Love you Ella Mae. I’ll miss you!