Elaine Margaret (Weller) Foley

It has been said that when a daughter loses her mother she has lost her best friend.  

My beautiful mother and best friend Elaine Margaret Foley, 97, passed away peacefully at my home in Sun City Hilton Head, S.C. on December 23rd, 2021. She was born in Erie, Pa. to Gustave and Margeret Brader Weller on February 19,1924.  She met my father John William Foley at Case Company where they both worked and married him on February 12th,1949.  He passed away on December 7th,1995.

Mom spent 23 years as a legal secretary working in a number of prominent law offices and was a past Vice President of Legal Secretaries.  After her retirement she volunteered at St. Vincent's Hospital and was a proud lifetime member of the former Erie Mannechor Ladies Auxillary.  She and my father could be found with their friends at the Erie Mannechor every Saturday night for dinner, drinks and bowling.  They traveled extensively throughout their retirement years to Europe, Scandanavia, Isreal, and The Balkans.

Mom moved to Sun City Hilton Head, SC in 2003 and quickly became involved in the many activities offered here.  I often complained that at 80 years old she was never home.  She was always out and about with her friends taking bus trips, playing cards, volunteering at the local hospital or with the Red Cross. When she moved south she seemed to get younger by the year living on her own in her home until April of this year.  She was known for her wicked sense of humor and her lifelong love of books still reading 2-3 books a week even after being diagnosed with Alzheimers in May.

Mom will be sorely missed by her daughter Kathy Cooksey and her husband Bob, 2 grandsons Steve Machuga of Los Angeles, California and Dave Machuga of Tampa, Florida and 2 step grandaughters Thayer Beheeler (Dan) of Knoxville, Tennessee and Leslie DeLacy (Matt) of Shippensberg Pa. along with 2 great grandsons Oliver Smith of Knoxville and Clayton Machuga of Tampa.

I would like to give a heartfelt thank you to the wonderful healthcare workers of MSA Hospice particularly Destiny and Joanne who without their help I could never have done what was needed her last week on earth.

Funeral arrangements are being coordinated by Sauls Funeral Home in Bluffton, SC. and Brugger Funeral Home in Erie, Pa.  Services will be announced at a later date.

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