Virginia Saveland

Leah Virginia "Dinny" Swartz Saveland was born in Findlay, Ohio, on May 16, 1914, to Anna and Bert Swartz, two years after her older brother, J. Robert Swartz. She grew up in the family home of her mother at 711 South Main Street. Her father worked for First National Bank of Findlay. Virginia had a happy childhood with friends she kept her entire life. An excellent student, Virginia attended Flora Stone Mather College of Western Reserve University on a full scholarship and graduated cum laude in 1936. She was a member of Delta Phi Upsilon and remained active with the sorority for years after her graduation. Virginia remained in Cleveland and worked for several firms before being employed at General Electric-Nela Park Division, where she met Jack Saveland. Virginia and Jack were married on September 5, 1942, while Jack was serving in the Army.Their first child, Jo Anne, was born on their first anniversary followed by John, born on December 11, 1944. Eventually they settled in Shaker Heights where the children attended Shaker schools until graduation. Virginia and Jack were members of Fairmount Presbyterian Church and both were active in the community. In addition to her duties as mother of two, Virginia found time to be Brownie leader, a Cub Scout den mother, an active member of Shaker PTA, room mother for each child's class, and to volunteer at the Florence Crittenden Home. In 1967, Jack was transferred to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, with US Steel where Virginia continued activities in the community such as cooking meals for homeless women at Bethlehem Shelter and volunteering with Meals on Wheels. Virginia and Jack supported First Presbyterian Church in downtown Pittsburgh. Moving to The Renaissance in 1994, Virginia continued her community work with activities such as serving as a Stephen Minister at John Knox Presbyterian Church in North Olmsted. She also continued to indulge her lifelong passion for playing bridge. She and Jack enjoyed the freedom to travel after he had retired and visited England, Scotland, Ireland, Scandinavia, among many other places and often took car trips through Canada, New England and the South. Even after Jack passed away, Virginia often spent time in Florida with friends during the winter and took a cruise of the Greek Isles. Virginia will be fondly remembered by those who knew her. REMEMBRANCES I have a lot of good memories of Grandma but my favorites are getting to be "the sugarman" when she was making cookies. She'd put me up on the counter and let me roll the cookie dough in sugar before putting it on the cookie sheet. I also remember her delicious applesauce. I have made it for my kids and it is so loved that it has earned the title "great-grandma's famous applesauce." I also remember getting to play with this enormous well, it seemed enormous to me at the time box of costume jewelry whenever we'd visit Pittsburgh. And she always had a toy or book from dad's childhood that we got to look at or play with while we were there which fascinated us. - Kristin Buchanan My fondest memories of my grandmother are the trips I would take as a little girl spending a week or so with her during the summer at her house in Pittsburgh. Grandma had a wonderful, enchanting box of sparkling costume jewelry that no nine-year-old could resist. She let me play with each piece of jewelry, but would also give me a little history about whom it belonged to and why it was special. Grandma did that with everything whether it was a piece of furniture, a thimble, a painting or a piece of clothing, she was a wealth of information and very sentimental about each piece. I loved hearing stories about my relatives and seeing items that belonged to them. My kids and I recently spent an afternoon with her going through her high school and college yearbooks, giggling over the names and funny hairstyles of the day. She remembered everyone and could tell you something about them. She also made the best orange-frosted cookies and homemade applesauce ever! I will deeply miss my grandmother, her stories and her love, but I know that she is at peace with Gackie now and we will all see each other again one day. - Suzanne Havranek I have so many fantastic memories of my grandmother that it's hard to choose just one. She was always easy to talk to, encouraging, positive and sweet. She taught me so many lessons too - big ones and little ones. The one thing that comes to mind, more than anything else, when I think of Grandma is the love of reading that she instilled in me when I was just a little boy. It was my sister who taught me HOW to read, but it was Grandma who taught me to LOVE to read. I was visiting my grandparents in Pittsburgh when I was about 10 years old. My mother and sister were out shopping and I was wandering around the house looking for something to do. Grandma was busy making dinner but before long she realized that I was bored and, to be honest, I was probably becoming a bit of a pest. She never lost her temper with me or seemed to be exasperated. She took me into the den where there was a large bookcase full of books. She handed one to me. It was big and heavy and I remember thinking that she had to be kidding. There was no way I could read this big, heavy adult-looking book. She said that she was sure that I would like it and, not wanting to disappoint her, I sat on the sofa and opened the book. I don't know how many hours passed before I realized that I had been completely engrossed in this book, that just hours before, appeared totally uninteresting and out of reach to me. I remember being amazed and delighted to Grandma had offered to me, as an escape from an otherwise boring and dreary afternoon, a fascinating adventure in the form of a book from the vast collection on her shelf. My love for reading, which I trace back to that dreary afternoon, would not only give me a hobby that would save me from ever being bored again, but would also help me to become more well-rounded and articulate, and eventually would lead me to major in English in college. Grandma's patient suggestion that day, I believe, had an enormous and positive influence in my life and I will never forget that. It was just one of the many ways that knowing her made me a better person. I will miss her dearly. - Rob French I am very fortunate to have had my mother for so long. She was devoted to her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. I could always depend on Mom to be there when I needed her, beginning when she flew to California to help a clueless first-time mother. Both Mom and Dad were ready, willing and able to help whenever asked. Mom was always there for mea�"in good times and bada�"lending her support. She always had time to listen and advise. In the past few years, we talked every day. Now that she is gone, a piece of me is also gone. I treasure a little music box Mom gave me a few years ago which is inscribed "Always my daughtera�"now my friend." There will never be a day I will not miss hera�"she was my best friend. - Jo Anne French L. Virginia Saveland nee Swartz, age 97, died on October 12, 2011, in Olmsted Township, OH. Beloved wife of the late Malcolm H. "Jack" Saveland; dear mother of Jo Anne French of South Euclid, OH, and John M. Saveland Linda of Potomac, MD; grandmother of Suzanne Havranek Robert, Daniel French, Robert French, Kristin Buchanan Stanton, Robert Saveland Leslie and John McL. Saveland; great-grandmother of Robert and Emily Havranek, Summer and Lila French, Katherine and Matthew Buchanan. In lieu of floral donations, the family prefers that those who wish may make contributions to John Knox Stephen Ministry, 25200 Lorain Avenue, North Olmsted, OH 44070, or an organization of their choice. A Memorial Service will be held at The Renaissance, 26376 John Rd., Olmsted Township, OH 44138 on Sunday, October 30 at 4 p.m.


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