June Winslow Love

June Winslow (né Phillips) Love of Cincinnati OH and The Villages FL passed away on 8/31/24. She was 85. She is preceded in death by her husband of 55 years, Dave Love –a former GE executive. She is survived by her brother David, her 2 sons Eric and Kevin, and her 3 grandchildren (Abigail, Jacob & Spencer). Born in Mt Lebanon PA, June attended Ohio Wesleyan U for several years as a member of the Delta Delta Delta (Tri-Delt) sorority. However, she finished her bachelor’s in home economics at Margaret Morrison Carnegie College (a women’s school at Carnegie Mellon U) back in Pittsburgh PA. Through a roommate, she met her husband Dave –a Carnegie Mellon engineering graduate who was serving as an officer in the US Army. After marriage, June & Dave lived together at Fort Bragg NC for a short time while Dave finished his service obligation. After NC, it was on to Hartford CT where they had their first son Eric while Dave worked at Pratt & Whitney –a manufacturer of aircraft engines. After approximately 5 years, they moved to Ohio since Dave got a new job with competitor GE Aerospace. In Cincinnati, June and Dave spent 30 plus years and lived in 6 homes across 4 neighborhoods while Dave completed a career with GE. First up was the west side in Springfield Township where their second son Kevin arrived. Seeking out better schools, they shifted to the east side with significant periods in Kenwood and Mariemont followed by a short stint in Loveland. June was dedicated entirely to raising her family initially but ramped up with work as time permitted. June’s work outside the home started with a stint at Sibcy Cline Realtors –a match with her passions for interior design. June loved colonial architecture and period décor, and real estate was a fit. She was a test chef contractor for Proctor & Gamble where she developed the first microwave instructions for Dunkin Heins cake mixes. More significant was her time as a librarian at Raymond Walters College of Blue Ash (now part of U of Cincinnati) and the Madeira public library. Library work matched her penchant for reading. June was often reading two or three novels at a time. James Patterson’s murder mysteries were among her favorites. Since sewing was a skill, she filled in gaps with a home-based seamstress business. June had multiple sewing machines and took on big projects like quilting blankets. She got her teaching certificate to serve as a substitute teacher at various high schools around the city. She wanted to start a gift-basket business, but instead decided to become a full-time teacher in home economics. June’s work as a teacher at Taft High Work downtown became her most significant work endeavor as it was challenging and stressful. The need to document the trials and tribulations of working in an inner-city high school served as the impetus for her colorful 4-volume diary covering the period. Husband Dave’s career advancements eventually gave June the ability to quit teaching. Free from teaching, June joined the Cincinnati Women’s Club (CWC) –a prestigious social and philanthropic organization with plenty of activities and people to interact with. Joining was no small endeavor and a major financial commitment. Membership was by invitation only --similar to joining a college sorority or a country club. It was kind of a combination of both. You can see from her tribute wall on the Gilligan Funeral Home site that fun hazing in angel costumes and pastel-colored uniforms was involved. After a time, June & Dave realized that instead of being “snow birds” with their second home, moving to Florida permanently was the better solution for retirement. It meant a whole new life and difficult adjustment, but June accepted the challenge. In Florida, June & Dave were residents of many homes in the sprawling The Villages retirement community over 20 years. Like Cincinnati, moving around was fun because upsizing to better neighborhoods came with the opportunity to redecorate each new home. June lived in Amberwood, Bridgeport and Piedmont. June tried to enjoy golf and would play if you twisted her arm, but she found satisfaction with clubs instead. Socializing via clubs forged June’s love for the Villages –since there was a club for absolutely everything there. She tried clubs based on hometown. She had success with the American Association of University Women (AAUW) . She enlisted her brother who had done a lot of the genealogy work for the Phillips family and managed her qualification for induction into the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) –a club similar to CWC back in Cincinnati, but with challenging membership criteria. To join DAR, you needed to identify a direct ancestor who was a soldier in the American revolution. David did the research and actually found two soldiers in their heritage. Clubs couldn’t fill her time enough. Bridge and painting complemented. The card game “Bridge” was June’s lifelong vehicle for socializing and learned the game from her dad who achieved grand master status. It was the only game June really ever enjoyed. In Cincinnati, June and Dave spent evenings with other couples at a card table –a classic way to entertain for her generation. In Florida, June found a women’s bridge group which met during the day. June took her turn hosting with multiple card tables in the living room. The club created her most solid friendships out of need because whole groups of four were necessary. There was lots of arm twisting and subterfuge to get all the players needed each week. Bonding and closer relationships than typical clubs were the result. Painting became June’s most fulfilling hobby and business. June started painting in Cincinnati, but it really took off in Florida. Her brother’s genealogy research uncovered June’s great aunt Marie Cassat –a famous American impressionist painter of the 1890’s. Marie Cassat was also born in Pittsburgh PA and because of her family’s wealth, she was able to forge a notable painting career and life in Paris collaborating alongside the other greats. June was inspired and ended up producing 100’s of paintings over a span of 30 years. She experimented with pastels, oils and acrylics but found the most satisfaction with watercolors. June’s average time to complete a painting was 1 hour –a speed that made her very prolific. There was no room on the walls of her homes for anything except her own works. Her husband became the master craftsman in framing. June had a storage unit at one point for the excess inventory of paintings. She participated in art fairs to sell them and show off. She was written about in the local newspapers multiple times. She found clubs that gave support and produced colleagues. June loved painting children, still life and landscapes and was commissioned to paint the children of others from a photograph. She would go on painting vacations as far away as Spain. June’s passion for painting seemed to end when her husband Dave passed away in 2016, however her sons revived her interest this year when Eric took her to a class and painted alongside her at her Ohio memory care institution --Courtyard at Centerville. A teacher was hired to facilitate June’s painting for 3 weeks until she contracted an infection that led to her death. It turned out that the dementia didn’t really quash her desire to paint, it was really the complicated logistics of setting up that was the barrier. Due to a stroke, she had to paint her final works with her left land –a handicap that didn’t stop her from enjoying it. June had a broad faith history. She was raised a Christian Scientist and followed the religion off and on and even concurrently with other Christian denominations. Her father made an impression since he was a very devout Christian Scientist who served in the management of his church. June joined St Paul’s United Methodist of Madeira, Kenwood Babtist and New Covenant United Methodist of The Villages. In Cincinnati, there was a stretch where she would go to services twice on Sunday at two different churches --Christian Science & one of the others. Experiencing the early symptoms of what would turn out to be vascular dementia, June sold her last home in 2021 for the simplicity of Watercrest senior living of The Villages –a beautiful facility with lots of potential friends. It started a 3-year final chapter of institutionalization in many facilities. Her sons moved her back to the Cincinnati area for her final 2 years. June lost the ability to walk in her final 18 months but never fussed about her mortality and muscled through day-to-day living just like she had always done. June will join her husband in Bushnell National Cemetery FL in a private burial. Please contribute to the Tribute Wall online or contact one of her sons. In lieu of flowers, the family requests a donation in her memory. June’s sons: Eric Love (714) 933-0917 eric@ericlove.net 12666 Louise Ln Garden Grove CA 92841 Kevin Love (937) 304-9597 kevinlove58@gmail.com 1937 Vista Oak Ct Centerville OH 45459

June Winslow Love

August 31, 1924