Mayor Jean Youngen

Retired Mayor Youngen died in December 2004.  During 26 years of public service, she gave her energy, patience, and wisdom to our community.  She was also an active member of the Ottawa Hills Foundation board of trustees.  We remember her with fondness and admiration.

The butterfly sculpture was purchased by the Ottawa Hills Foundation as a memorial tribute to former Mayor Jean Youngen and her many years of service to our community. 

Ottawa Hills Foundation

David Baehren, MD - President

419-539-7544

Ottawa Hills mayor was only woman to hold post  © 2004 The Blade

Jean Youngen, 80, the only woman to be mayor of Ottawa Hills, who held the office for 16 years - longer than anyone else, died Monday in Medical College of Ohio Hospitals from complications of lung cancer.

She retired at the end of 2003, as she concluded her fourth four-year term.

"She put the village first," said Kevin Gilmore, who succeeded her as mayor. "The combination of the time she would devote to it and her friendly and caring effort set her apart from everyone else.''

Mrs. Youngen, who had a master of nursing degree from Yale University, moved to Ottawa Hills in 1965 with her husband, Dr. Robert Youngen, and their family. She took an interest in community activities.

"I became interested politically when one of my sons was almost hit while riding his bike near an intersection here," Mrs. Youngen told The Blade in 1990. "We pushed to get a crossing guard in that area, and that's how it started."

She became the first woman on Village Council in 1977 and the first woman to be mayor in 1987.

"She was always kind of service oriented and a community oriented type of person," her husband said. "It would only be natural that she could find satisfaction in helping others. That was her whole life story."

As mayor, she maintained her personal qualities of sincerity, integrity, and decency, said village Administrator Marc Thompson, who worked with Mrs. Youngen for 12 years.

"It always amazed me that she was able to seek and find the best qualities in others," Mr. Thompson said. "She was recognized as a person who wasn't trying to promote an agenda other than what she thought was best for the community. She was as fine a person as I've ever met."

The book, A Promise Kept: A History of the Village of Ottawa Hills, was published nearly a year ago, and Mrs. Youngen "was instrumental in seeing that it got done," said author James C. Marshall.

"She thought there was a great amount of history that if not recorded would be lost," said Mr. Marshall, manager of the local history and genealogy department of the Toledo-Lucas County Public Library. "She wanted it remembered."

Mrs. Youngen, who was born in Bridgeport, Conn., received a bachelor's degree in art history from Vassar College. She later was a neurosurgical head nurse at Yale Medical Center and taught surgical nursing at the University of Connecticut school of nursing.

She served on the boards of Lourdes College and the Toledo Visiting Nurse Service.

Surviving are her husband, Dr. Robert Youngen, whom she married June 18, 1960; sons, Jeffrey, Christopher, Douglas, and John Youngen; daughter, Kathryn Walker, and four grandchildren.

There will be no visitation. Memorial services will be at 11 a.m. Friday in St. Michael's in the Hills Episcopal Church, where she was a member of the vestry. Arrangements are by the J. Jeffrey Fretti Mortuary.

The family suggests tributes to the Ottawa Hills Foundation or the church.

The Ottawa Hills history book, "A Promise Kept," project was funded by the Ottawa Hills Foundation and dedicated to then retired Mayor Jean Youngen, whose inspiration and encouragement made this book a reality.  The cover is from "Ottawa River," a painting by Edmond Osthaus (1858 - 1928.)

Jean Lashar (Weed) Youngen

(obituary, as printed in The Blade)  A lifetime spent in service to others as a nurse and a community leader  Jean Lashar (Weed) Youngen died Monday morning, December 13, 2004, at the Medical College of Ohio Hospital after a brief illness.

Following a distinguished career in nursing and education, Jean Youngen turned her energy, organizational abilities and leadership skills to the service of her community. In 1977, she became the first woman to be elected to the Ottawa Hills Village Council. After serving ten distinguished years on the Council, she ran for mayor of Ottawa Hills and was elected to that office in 1987. She was the first woman to be elected mayor and served in that position for sixteen years. She retired when her term ended in 2003.

After graduating from Vassar College, Mrs. Youngen worked in Manhattan designing kitchens for General Electric. She continued her education at Yale University where she received a master's degree from the School of Nursing in New Haven, Connecticut. She accepted a position at Yale Medical Center specializing in neurosurgery. She quickly moved up and became head nurse of neurology at the Center. She also taught surgical nursing at the University of Connecticut School of Nursing.

While at Yale, she met another Yale graduate, physician, Dr. Robert Youngen. They married and moved to Ottawa Hills in 1965 and have called it home ever since. Dr. Youngen set up a private practice and the couple began raising their family of four sons and one daughter.
In 2004, upon her retirement as Mayor, the village honored Jean Youngen by renaming the Administration Building, the Jean W. Youngen Municipal Building.

Among her many activities, Mrs. Youngen served on the boards of Lourdes College and the Swan Creek Retirement Center. She was also president of the Toledo Visiting Nurse Service and served on its board for ten years. She was also president of The Academy of Medicine Alliance. She was also involved with the Toledo Metropolitan Area Council of Governments and also served on the board for The Safety Council of Northwest Ohio.

Mrs. Youngen was a long-standing active member at St. Michael's in the Hills Episcopal Church. Her service included being on the Vestry, along with being a Lay Reader, Chalice Bearer and a member of the Altar Guild.

Since her retirement as Mayor in January, she spent much of her time traveling back to New England to cherish every moment with her grandchildren. In addition to all her service and love, Jean will be remembered as an avid NYT Sunday crossword puzzle solver, the most gracious opponent on the other side of a backgammon board, and an ever keen-minded bridge player.

Mrs. Youngen was born in Bridgeport, Connecticut to Robert Francis Weed and Martha Inslee Lashar. She is survived by her husband of forty-four years, Dr. Robert Youngen; sons, Jeffrey of Arlington, VA, Christopher (Denise) of Perrysburg, Douglas (Lynn) of Newton, MA, John of Toledo and Kathryn (Steve) Walker of Norfolk, MA and four grandchildren. Kathryn is scheduled to deliver another grandchild later this month, a girl, and she plans to name her Martha Inslee in honor of Jean's mother.

There will be no visitation. A memorial service will be held Friday, December 17, 2004, at St. Michael's in the Hills Episcopal Church in Ottawa Hills at 11 a.m. Private burial is in Joy Cemetery.  In lieu of flowers, charitable donations can be made to the Ottawa Hills Community Foundation or to St. Michael's in the Hills, Episcopal Church. Arrangements by the J. Jeffrey Fretti Funeral Home, 5045 W. Sylvania Avenue (at Corey Rd.) 419-843-1117.