Sylvia Fowler Brys McGregor, age 92, a Lake County resident for 70 years, passed away peacefully June 26, 2017.
She was born February 7, 1925, in Ashtabula, Ohio, the daughter of Howard J. Fowler and Sylvia Blazier Fowler.
Her mother died in childbirth and her father passed away when she was five. She was raised in Jefferson, Ohio, by her grandparents, Ellsworth and Amanda Blazier. After their passing, Sylvia lived with her bachelor uncle, Jess Adrian Blazier, until his marriage to Ethel Coon in 1939.
Sylvia then became a boarding student at The Andrews School for Girls, majoring in business, completing her studies in 1943. At her first job at S. K. Wellman, she met her first husband, Joseph S. Brys. They were married in 1945, and had five children by 1956. Joseph passed away in 1970, and in 1973, she married her second husband, Charles L. McGregor, who died in 2010.
Sylvia was a kind and gentle lady, a friend to many, and devoted to her children, 11 grandchildren, and 15 great-grandchildren. She was happily anticipating the arrival of the 16th and 17th. She was a wonderful mother who raised her children while holding down a full-time job at a time when many women did not work outside the home. She began in 1958 as a mortgage secretary at First Federal Savings and Loan in Mentor. In 1965, Sylvia joined the staff of her beloved alma mater and became secretary to the Dean of Girls and then administrative assistant to the Headmaster of The Andrews School for Girls, serving for more than 30 years.
She loved playing bridge, and, for more than 20 years after her retirement, was a regular duplicate player at the Mentor Senior Center. She was a voracious reader and lover of great music, instilling these passions in her children by her example. With her second husband, Charles, she was an active member of the Mentor Harbor Yacht Club, where he served as Commodore. Sylvia and Charles also enjoyed the fellowship of the George E. Hayward VFW Post 9295 in Mentor. She enjoyed discovering her heritage as a 12th generation descendant of Peter Brown, a Mayflower passenger, and joined the Society of Mayflower Descendants, Cleveland Colony.
Sylvia is survived by her sons, Joseph H. Brys of Fairport Harbor, William (wife, Pamela) Brys of Mentor; daughters, Martha (husband, John) Matuska of Willoughby Hills, Helen (husband, Dennis) Lutz of Rochester, New York, and Maribeth (husband, Larry) Kalb of Avon Lake; and grandchildren, Margaret Matuska, Mark Matuska, Matthew Matuska, Therese Evans, Timothy Brys, Mary Vidal Brys, Thomas Lutz, Christine Vander Naald, Julie Dearing, Jeanette Kalb and Stephen Kalb.
Family will receive friends at the McMahon-Coyne-Vitantonio Funeral Home, 6330 Center St. (Route 615, north of Route 2), Mentor from 3 to 6 p.m. Sunday, July 2, and 10 to 11 a.m. Monday, July 3, followed by a memorial service at 11 a.m. Burial will be in Oakdale Cemetery, 328 N. Market Street, Jefferson.
Those who wish may make memorial contributions, they are suggested in Sylvia’s name to the Roberta Lee-Harriet Gray Scholarship, c/o Andrews Osborne Academy, 38588 Mentor Ave., Willoughby, OH 44094.
To leave condolences for the family, order flowers or light a memorial candle, visit www.MCVfuneralhomes.com.

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