Vania Lyn Elias Obituary – Vania Lyn Elias, 45 years old, passed away at 11:45 a.m. on Thursday, December 7, 2023, at her home surrounded by her loving family. Vania was born on February 12, 1978, and remained a. On July 10, 2022, in Elkhart, Vania Lyn Ross and Benjamin D. Elias were united in marriage.
Along with Ben, her loving husband, Vania is survived by their son, Langston Elias; her parents, Terry and Darlyn Ross of Lakeville; brother and sister-in-law, Vaughn and Christa Ross of Lakeville; nieces, Emily and Alayna; great nephew, Theo; and her grandparents, Larry Ross of South Bend and Wanda Colavitti of Plymouth. Vania is also survived by her mother and father-in-law, Gail Eastman of Elkhart and Daniel Elias of South Carolina, and her sister and brother-in-law, Sara and Jim Downing of Elkhart. Vania worked for Welch Packaging as a human resource business partner. She was a graduate of LaVille Jr.-Sr. High School and studied at Ball State University. In addition to her professional career in human resources, she ran a successful one-woman business, making handmade and custom jewelry. She was a mainstay at artisan and craft shows throughout the area and a champion of small local business owners.
She enjoyed traveling going to concerts, and holding long conversations with friends. She delighted in having one of her dad’s bloody marys by the pool. She loved closing the curtains and spending long quiet nights with her adoring husband, Ben, and cat, Bouj. What she cared most about in life was making sure that the people she loved were happy, comfortable, and safe. This could be witnessed in the constant stockpile of gifts she had stored for friends and family, her willingness to drop everything to attend to a friend in need, and how she would say “How are you?” or “What can I do to help?” with the most unmistakable sincerity before ever speaking about herself.
She became an unexpected but incredibly impactful healthcare and cancer advocate by openly talking about the frustrating complications of navigating the healthcare system, the importance of always advocating for oneself, the difficult physical and mental challenges of living with cancer, and most importantly, how to live life with joy, grace, honesty, and love in the face of those challenges. A service celebrating Vania’s life will be held at 6 p.m. on December 15th at the Palmer Funeral Home, within the Palmer Community Complex, 601 N. Michigan Street, Lakeville. Friends may visit with the family two hours before the service. Instead of flowers, contributions in memory of Vania Elias can be made to ALK Postive, Inc., 6595 Roswell Road, Suite G2310, Atlanta, GA 30328.