Jeffrey N. Hughes, age 77 of Willowick, passed away at home surrounded by his family on September 16, 2020. He was born May 10, 1943 in Cleveland to the late Clifford and Jacqueline Hughes.
Jeff graduated from Shaw High School and worked at Picker Xray International for over 28 years. He was a man of many talents; some would say a jack-of-all-trades. If you needed something built or fixed you called Jeff. Whether it was a car repair, electrical, plumbing, carpentry or dog training. Jeff could do it all.
He had many hobbies including candle making, canning (tomatoes/jellies) and woodworking. He made fixtures and furniture all from scraps. Jeff was most proud of his childhood Lionel standard gage train set/village he assembled around the Christmas tree every year and his beautiful vegetable/fruit garden. He always loved a good PB&T sandwich (yes, that’s peanut butter and tomato from the garden). Don’t knock it until you try it. Over the years he made numerous handcrafted gifts for people and if you are one of the lucky ones you may own one of Jeff’s original hand carved name signs that he often gave as a wedding gift.
His kids frequently referred to him as Mr. Wizard. He taught them all about the sciences including engineering, chemistry, geology, horticulture, and astronomy. He was a member of the Holden Arboretum for many years. He enjoyed fishing, hiking and walking the riverbed. For years Jeff played softball, darts, bowling, basketball and coached his son’s teams. Some may remember him as the ‘Mummy’ at the Willowick Jaycee’s Haunted House back in the day.
Jeffrey is the loving husband of 57 years to Susan G. Hughes (nee Robinson); dearest father of Brian (Judi) Hughes, Lisa (Don) Wharton and Jason (Nicole Maruna) Hughes; beloved grandfather of Adam, Connor and Audrey Hughes, Dylan and Ryan Wharton, Allison, Samantha, Mallory and Luke Hughes, Clara and Johnny Maruna, brother of Bradley (Lenore) Hughes and the late Ronald Hughes and Gregory Hughes; uncle and cousin of many.
He’ll be forever remembered for his quick wit and sense of human. Heaven will be a much neater place with him in it and we are sure everything will be organized and labeled in no time. We sure hope they have playing cards and lottery tickets in heaven.
Due to the current environment, there will be no services rather a celebration of life for immediate family. Donations can be made in Jeffrey’s name to Heartland Hospice, who are angels in their own right. Mailing Address: 4807 Rockside Rd., STE 110, Independence, OH 44131.
Arrangements have been entrusted to Jeff Monreal Funeral & Cremation Services.
