Ila Jean Martin

Ila Jean Martin, 82 , of Canfield, passed away on Monday, March 22, 2021, at her home with her loving family present. Ila was born March 31, 1938 in Youngstown, a daughter of the late John James and Mary Doris (Malone) Martin. She graduated from Ursuline High School where she was a majorette, winning many awards in baton twirling throughout Ohio, and then earned a B.S. in Education as well as a Master's in Education from Youngstown State University. She furthered her education by attending Georgetown University in Washington, DC and Laval University in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada, majoring in French. She was also a student of other languages including Italian. Since childhood, Ila Jean always wanted to be a teacher. As a member of the Ursuline Convent, Ila (Sister Mary Doris, OSU) taught at various schools in the Diocese of Youngstown. She served as principal of Holy Family School in Poland, and during that time she accompanied four local students to India's First International Summer Village, where they traveled throughout India visiting many places of historic interest. After moving to Virginia, Ila taught elementary and middle schools in the Prince William County School System. She was certified as a reading specialist as well as being certified to teach special needs students. In addition to her full-time teaching, Ila also taught reading to adults. Ila was a devoted Catholic and a member of St. Michael Parish . She maintained many professional memberships in Ohio and Virginia including being a former member and officer of VFW Auxiliary Post 9571. She looked forward to traveling, especially trips to Ireland, Italy , and Canada. She loved animals, the many dogs and cats throughout her life and also horses that she enjoyed showing in competition. Ila also enjoyed cooking and cake decorating, but most importantly she was devoted to her family and will be dearly missed by her sisters and many nieces and nephews. She is survived by her siblings Elaine Martin, Sister Mary Peter Martin. FSP (Mary Louise), Ellen Martin, Regina (Everett) Spell, Rita (Don) Knauf, and Kelly Hardinger .Besides her parents, Ila was preceded in death by her brothers, William, John, Timothy, and Vincent and her sisters Evelyn Hilden, Coletta Hutchins , Theresa Osthoff and Frances Martin.The family would like to express appreciation to Hospice of the Valley for their support and care of Ila and her family. Friends may call on Thursday from 10:00 am - 11:00 am at St. Michael Parish, followed by a Mass of Christian Burial at 11:00 a.m. Due to the current public health situation, those attending are required to wear a face mask at all times and observe social distancing protocols.