Eileen Pettus

1946 - 2021

Pettus, Eileen Ryan

Suddenly, Sunday, January 17, 2021 at the Health First's Holmes Medical Center, Melbourne, FL. The result of an automobile accident. She was 74 years old. Eileen was born in New York City on Oct. 28, 1946. She was an alumna of Convent of the Sacred Heart, 91st Street, in New York City; Sacred Heart Greenwich (Connecticut); and the Convent of the Sacred Heart, Kenwood, in Albany, New York, from which she graduated in 1964. She attended Briarcliff, Briarcliff Manor, NY, and in 1968 she graduated from Maryville University, St. Louis, with a degree in English Literature. During her early years in New York she was a runway and magazine model, and in St. Louis worked for the old Southwest Bank, and Commerce banks. Her marriages to John B. Mitchell Jr., of St. Louis, and Theodore T. Pettus of New York both ended in divorce. She returned from St. Louis to New York City in 1985, and worked as a client representative in the private banking group at JP Morgan, New York. In 2004 she relocated to South Florida, closeby to where her family had a longtime second home. In Florida, Eileen was active in several charities and nonprofits, including the Boys and Girls Club of Palm Beach County. She was supportive of "Paul's Place" in Palm Beach County, an after-school program that provides mentoring and nourishment to underprivileged children. She was alternately known by nicknames such as Leendog and Rosebud, but by whatever name she was also described as a brilliant and beautiful force, a woman who had a significant and profound impact on scores of people she encountered on her sometimes bumpy journey. Eileen was charismatic, they agree: quick-witted, well-read, outspoken, charming, magnetic, sophisticated, exceptionally generous, captivating, creative and artistic, dazzling, optimistic, possessed of an extraordinary sense of humor; and indelibly fashionable. She was an avid angler, an occasional golfer, a fanatical baseball devotee and sports fan; she was a dedicated philanthropist, an impassioned theater and music lover, a gifted artist, a dog lover extraordinaire. She enjoyed the best that life had to offer, and had a thirst for mischief. She always threw the best party. Eileen was a devoted mother and grandmother, sister and friend. She had an exceptionally close and joyful relationship with her only grandchild, Blake Jr., who received her undivided attention and affection. Coincidentally, they also celebrated the same birthday. She is survived by her children, John Blanton Mitchell III, (wife, Anita) of San Francisco, and Mariah Mitchell Davis of New York City; by her grandson, Blake Tamblyn Davis Jr.; her brothers John Ryan (wife, Virginia); Chevy Chase, Maryland; and Kevin Ryan (wife, Lynde) of Beaufort, South Carolina, and Michael Ryan of Bradenton, Florida, along with numerous nieces, nephews, grand nieces and grand nephews. Eileen was preceded in death by her siblings: Charles Patrick Ryan, Jr. (wife, Cissy), Garden City, New York; Cathleen Ann Ryan, New York; and her parents, Charles Patrick Ryan and Mary Dwyer Ryan of New York, New York. Services: Plans for a memorial service will be announced later. The family would like to thank caregivers at Holmes Medical Center in Melbourne, Florida, for their extraordinary care and dedication. In lieu of flowers, donations should go to "Big Dog Ranch Rescue" Animal rescue service, 14444 Okeechobee Blvd., Loxahatchee Groves, FL 33470.