Eloise Cornist

Eloise Cornist was born on July 17, 1928, in Waverly, Louisiana. She was the first born of three children to Eddie, Sr., and Lenora E. (Anderson) Cornist. As many families did during the first Black Migration, her family headed North and eventually made their home in the state of Ohio. She grew up and attended school in the City of Lockland, Ohio. Due to an illness she had to withdraw from high school during senior year in 1945.

Eloise had various jobs during her life, but she found what she really enjoyed doing was working as a housekeeper for different families. She did this for over 40 years until her health limited her from doing the work she loved.

She joined the Mt. Zion Baptist Church when she was 15 years old. She has been a faithful member ever since. She would attend the many services, programs and activities that the church had. Her love for bible study was very important in her life, with her participation in the Seasoned Saints running a close second.

In 2018, Elouise turned 90 years old and was honored in a program by the Mt. Zion Seasoned Saints. Although she had to withdraw early from high school, she had enough credits to receive her high school diploma. With collaboration between Lockland High School and the Seasoned Saints, Eloise was surprised when she was presented with her diploma at their annual banquet.

Although Eloise survived both her parents and her brothers (John D. Cornist and Eddie Cornist, Jr.), she didn’t complain of being lonely or bored. She made friends wherever she went, and people always spoke of her sweet personality and her kindness. When not attending church activities she enjoyed watching cooking shows and westerns. She loved to read, especially Reader’s Digest. She made sure her subscriptions were up to date to many different magazines.

On April 20, 2025, early Easter morning, Eloise suffered a stroke and passed away 2 weeks later on May 4, 2025, at the age of 97 years old. She leaves to cherish her memory: two nieces, Celestine D. Cornist and Theresa Cornist; one great niece; four great nephews; two great-great nephews; three great-great nieces; and a host of other relatives and friends. Special appreciation and love goes to Phyllis Mckinley, who kept Eloise informed and active in activities and programs at the church and Arethia Renfro, who was the Social Director at Friendship Plaza. Eloise considered them both trusted friends, and they gave extra support to the family and were very doting when Eloise’s health began to fail.

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