Michele Pearl Ellison

Michele Pearl Ellison was born on November 1, 1954, in Queens, New York, to Ruby Miles and James Monroe Ellison. The second born of three girls to a couple who dedicated their lives to community activism in the Suffolk County, Long Island hamlet of Wyandanch, Michele's own path into social justice and healing work began as a little girl. Merely months after the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, the burning of the Ellison home on Straight Path launched what would become for Michele a lifetime of advocacy for the fair treatment of African Americans as well as other systematically minoritized groups. The blaze, which an all-white fire crew let destroy the Ellison home as the family watched, led to a community-wide march wherein a 9-year-old Michele joined her mother and father in calling for the department's integration. The quiet little girl was brought more and more out of her shell as time went on. She helped her father around his real estate and insurance office that doubled as a meeting place for local branches of the VFW, Congress of Racial Equality (CORE), and the NAACP. She tagged along to help her parents with voter registration drives and watched as they fought for quality healthcare services for Wyandanch and pushed for accountability by the local police department. Free, unstructured time was rare in the Ellison household, and Michele would, over a lifetime, construct her own legacy for being in service through faith to justice and humanity. After finishing grammar school in Wyandanch, Michele's education continued at Long Island Lutheran High School where service projects including in Antigua through Operation Crossroads Africa highlighted early the importance of cross-cultural connections. This competency would only grow in importance for Michele as time went on. She briefly attended Pacific Lutheran University in Washington state before being sidelined by pneumonia that brought her closer to home. She attended SUNY at Empire State where she earned her Bachelor of Science in Social Work and Human Services. Later, she earned her Master of Social Work in Policy, Planning and Administration at SUNY at Stony Brook, and her Master of Divinity at Virginia Union's Samuel Proctor Dewitt School of Theology. In more recent years, Michele began her pursuit of a doctorate in Creative Ministry at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary however withdrew from the program this winter after a six-year battle with ovarian cancer. This May, she was awarded a Certificate in Advanced Studies in Ministry recognizing her work in the program. Over her career, Michele's leadership, service, and ministry would extend from theory in college classrooms where she taught, to practice and advocacy in the communities where she lived. Her work delved into issues related to African Americans' access to quality educational opportunities, employment, health care, and housing and economic development, and police accountability, substance abuse and addiction, and youth violence prevention. In her capacity as an ordained minister, she preached in Lutheran, Baptist, and Episcopal contexts across the country and as a chaplain, provided spiritual care including at UPMG Children's Hospital, NYU Medical Children's Hospital (NYU Langone Health) and Memorial Sloan Kettering. In addition, as chaplain, she provided grief support to military families, herself the daughter of a WWII army veteran. When Michele arrived in Pittsburgh the week of September 11, 2001, she quickly got involved in social welfare program administration and advocacy that would span over the next 20 years - working on local police accountability, contributing to national immigration policy recommendations, and gaining acceptance to Leadership Pittsburgh where she joined others in shaping community development and equity conversations. She was active in the Black Political Empowerment Project (BPeP) where she served as a volunteer and a producer of "Thoughts for Today" and "BPeP Community Moments," which air on WGBN 1360AM. During the 2020 presidential election cycle, Michele's question was selected to be answered at a televised town hall for former Vice President Joe Biden who was then a candidate for president. She is listed in the International Who's Who of Professionals and the archives of Torchbearers-Trailblazers: Women in the Civil Rights Movement at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Center for Non-Violent Change in Atlanta, Ga. Seeking justice was what anchored Michele (Micah 6:8). "You don't have to be marching on a picket line - your work can be a form of fighting for civil rights." Michele, who founded Life-Long Lessons LLC, a human services firm that integrated spirituality and mental health, provided consulting including to the American Bible Society and the Council of Churches of the City of New York. In addition to delivering workshops and motivational speeches, she was also a writer of essays, poetry, and devotionals. She authored Rising: 100 Meditations and Affirmations for Military Families, and was in the process of writing her memoir at the time of her passing. She is survived by her sisters Nadia Ellison Tyson of Islandia, N.Y., Pamela I. Ellison of Lorton, Va., step-sister Frances Ellison-Dansby of Atlanta, Ga., cousin Sandra Pettaway, cousin once removed Walter Callaway, three nieces Bravetta Hassell, Shaude Tyson, and Paris (Tyson) Robbins, two great nephews, a great niece, and a host of further extended family. She will be missed by family, by her dear lifelong best friend JoyAnne Amani (Richardson) of Baltimore, close friend Shontell Giles of Richmond, Va., members of InterPlay Pittsburgh including Sheila Collins, Lynn Coghill, Lois Toni McClendon, and Lavern Baker, and a community of colleagues and other friends spanning from these United States and overseas in China where Michele taught briefly. A memorial service celebrating Michele's life will be held at 11am on Saturday, September 26, at First Lutheran Church, 615 Grant Street, Pittsburgh, PA, 15219. The ashes of Michele will be interred at the church, where they will rest in peace. Professional services trusted to D'Alessandro Funeral Home & Crematory Ltd., Lawrenceville.

Michele Pearl Ellison

November 1, 1954 - August 28, 2026