Ann Lowery Lightfoot

Ann Lowery Lightfoot, 95, of Massillon, Ohio, passed away on February 20, 2024 after a long illness.

Ann was born in Luverne, Alabama on September 6, 1928, to parents Verdi Lowery and Annie Ruth Davis Lowery. As a teen, she and her family moved to the Uhrichsville, Ohio area and Ann lived on her fraternal grandparents' farm. Ann and her twin sister Minnie were 1946 graduates of Uhrichsville High School. After high school, to further her education, Ann took postgraduate classes at Massillon Washington High School in 1949. She and Elijah Lightfoot were married on November 5, 1949 and soon thereafter started a family.

She was a devoted spouse, mother, friend, and a woman of deep faith. She cared passionately about her family, friends, and her community. Ann served in various volunteer, appointed, and elected roles, notably as a long-time member of the Massillon Board of Education, an elected position. She was an advocate for the educational needs of her children and Massillon families alike. Ann was also a devoted and active member of St. James AME Zion Church in Massillon where she served on the Missionary Society and as a Class Leader, among many other roles.

Ann spent most of her working career as a nurse's aide and care worker in various healthcare settings. When not at work, Ann enjoyed cooking big family meals, serving at church, watching Massillon Tiger football games, cheering on the Cleveland Cavaliers, and spending time with her grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

Ann is survived by her children, Angela Holdren, Brian P. Lightfoot, and Lori E. Lightfoot (Amy Eshleman), Stacey L. Smith (Tracy Smith); her sisters Katie Gamble of Omaha, NE, Minnie Washington (Bill Washington) of Altadena, CA, and Hilda Lowery of Massillon, OH; brother-in-law, Charles Long of Columbus, OH, as well as many grandchildren, great grandchildren and many other extended family members and friends. She was preceded in death by her husband, Elijah Lightfoot to whom she was married for over 60 years, her oldest son, Derrick E. Lightfoot, her sisters Marie Jackson, Cumi Harris, and Mae Pearl Crable as well as her brother, Abraham Lowery; and brothers-in-law Raleigh Lightfoot and Harrison “Sonny” Phillips, and other family members.

Visitation will be held at St. James AME Zion Church (209 2nd St S.W., Massillon, Ohio) on Friday, March 1, 2024, from 4:00 pm to 7:00 pm. Funeral services will be held on Saturday, March 2nd at 11 am, at St. James AME Zion Church. Rev. LeCounte P. Nedab II will officiate and Rev. Walter Arrington, a family friend and Senior Pastor of Peoples Baptist Church, Canton, OH, will deliver the eulogy.

In lieu of flowers, donations in Ann’s honor can be made to St. James AME Zion Church or the Massillon Tiger Swing Band, https://tigerswingband.com/donate/.

The Paquelet Funeral Home in Massillon, Ohio, is assisting with the funeral arrangements.