Work is underway to transform the area along the West End bike trail behind Penelec in Oil City into a place of meditation and reflection on nature in memory of Suzette Nellis.
Over the course of this week, a cement walkway and teardrop-shaped pad have been poured and stamped to look like weathered wood, and gravel has been brought in to surround the walkway and teardrop.
“I’m very happy with the way things have come out,” Suzette’s husband, Jerry Nellis, said of the memorial taking shape. “Watching the process has been pretty neat.”
Jerry Nellis, who has been quite active in the memorial coming together, said he met his wife of almost 58 years at the Rocky Grove Fireman’s Fair. The couple was together about 61 or 62 years, including the time they were dating, he said.
A GoFundMe account, organized by Suzette’s daughter, Amy Still, raised $17,650 before donations were turned off. The money has gone to purchase security cameras to be placed on the bike trail as well as to create a “memorial spot with a positive message to spread kindness, like she did,” according to the GoFundMe account.
The area will be landscaped and a bench and memorial stone will be put in place, Jerry Nellis said.
A number of local people and businesses contributed monetary donations, materials or labor to make the memorial a reality.
They include John J. Deemer General Contracting, Heath Oil, S.A.S. Concrete and Tile, Joe Stiglitz and Co., Rod Stover Timberline Tree and John Vincent of Vincent Gravel, as well as Daniel J. Heath, John Deemer, Aubree Jo Deemer, Jonathan Deemer, Dean Seaman and Josh Rizzone.
The City of Oil City also helped by clearing out and leveling the site.
