Lana Ross

Lana Ross Elkhart, Ind. - Lana Ross died Tuesday (Nov. 11, 2025) at her daughter's home in Indiana. She was born in Alton on Aug. 29, 1942. She was the daughter of Kimon Economides and Era L. Weeks. Her stepfather was William Weeks. Lana is survived by her brother, Paul Economides of Virginia Beach, Va.; sister-in-law Nancy (Tim) Gaffney of Morris; and sister-in-law Renee (Jim) Economides of Albuquerque, N.M. Lana married Charles Ross on June 13, 1964, in Alton. Charles preceded her in death in 2021. Lana is survived by two children, six grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. Their daughter, Jennifer, lives in Elkhart, Ind. Jennifer has a daughter, Alexa (Daniel) Page, of Dallas; and two sons, Andy (Cecilia) Ross of Elkhart and Aiden (fiancée Myla) of Ft. Wayne, Ind. Their son Jonathan and his wife, Erika, live in Mahomet. Their son A.J. (Lynsey) lives in Angier, N.C., and two daughters, Maria (Jordan) Jacob of Evanston and Olivia Ross of Rochester. Lana was also blessed with four great-grandchildren, Mateo (3) and Nora (1) of Elkhart and Everly (2) and Charley (1 month) of Angier. Lana graduated from Alton High School in 1960 and went to Southern Illinois University. She graduated from SIU in 1964 with a secondary teaching degree in English. She and Charles were married the day after graduation and left for Rochester, N.Y., where Charles was enrolled in Colgate-Rochester Divinity School. Because Lana had taken a class at SIU on teaching reading, she was able to secure a job as a reading teacher in the suburbs of Rochester. With the "War on Poverty" legislation in 1964, money had been allocated for specific reading classes in public schools. Lana shared with the administration that she only had one class in reading. She was told that was one more class than anyone else had, and she was hired. This job led Lana to a long career teaching children to read. She earned a master's degree from the University of Illinois in reading and was hired at Lincoln School in Monticello as a reading specialist. In 1990, Lana was part of a small group of teachers to be among the first in the area to be trained in Reading Recovery, a revolutionary reading intervention program at the time. She retired from Monticello schools in 2006. After retirement, Lana spent a great deal of her time traveling. The constant traveling gave birth to a new game her son and daughter played called, "Do you know where Mom is?" Her travels included hiking in Croatia, climbing the mast of a clipper ship in the Caribbean, a side trip to Antarctica from New Zealand, and a trip with Charles to see the Panama Canal. Lana passed her love of travel along to her six grandchildren by taking them on trips to Washington, D.C., the YMCA of the Ozarks, and a variety of other places. And when a real live adventure wasn't possible, she created adventures for the grandchildren at her house in Monticello. From scavenger hunts for Christmas presents to hiding money in empty vegetable cans, Nana's house was full of adventures and lasting memories. In addition to teaching children to read, Lana spent a great deal of time introducing children to the joys of theater. Her own children were somewhat willing participants in multiple church Christmas pageants at Calvary Baptist Church. Lana was a founding member of the Monticello Theater Association and headed up several children's theater productions. She was a frequent theater attendee as well with season tickets to the Broadway in Chicago theater league. Lana was a member of Calvary Baptist Church in Monticello for 50 years. She also attended First Baptist Church in Mahomet. Her faith ran deep, and she shared this faith by caring for others and making sure everyone had a good time while she was here. A private family graveside service will be held on Saturday, Nov. 15, with a celebration-of-life party on March 7 at Calvary Baptist Church, Monticello. Mackey-Wright Funeral Home is handling arrangements. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be sent to Calvary Baptist Church in Monticello or to the Monticello Theater Association via their Facebook page. Condolences may be sent to the family at mackey-wrightfuneralhome.com.