Melinda “Mindy” Lee Jester

Melinda “Mindy” Lee Jester ceased her fight against bile duct cancer and entered the spiritual world shortly after dawn on March 29, 2023.  She was at her home in North Vernon, her husband Ralph Rohrer by her side.  Mindy was 67 years old.

Mindy was born in Indianapolis on October 29, 1955.  She was the third child of Conner and Margery Jester. 

Mindy loved cats.  Once she made her brother rescue a small, black kitten from a railroad crossing.  That cat, named Nerd, stayed with her for nearly 20 years.  More than two dozen cats found their way into her care over the years.  Others, such as the cat that wandered in from God-knows-where to find her tent in an open field in Illinois’ Starved Rock State Park, basked in her aura only briefly. 

Mindy loved playing music.  She marched with her flute and piccolo with the Center Grove High School Marching Band at Disney World and played in the All-State band.  She played piano and organ, and occasionally guitar, for the Second Friends Church in Indianapolis, for the United Church of Hyde Park and the Swedenborgian Church in Chicago (11 years), for Buck Creek United Methodist Church (10 years), and for the First United Methodist Church of North Vernon (4 years).  She accompanied several Tippecanoe and Jennings County high school students at ISSMA contests. 

Mindy sang in the church choirs at Buck Creek UMC and First UMC.  She sang 18th Century ballads with the Strolling Singers at Lafayette’s Feast of the Hunters’ Moon.  Her vocal range and talent allowed her to sing soprano, alto, and tenor parts.  She sang to and with her family.  She composed and arranged several songs.

Mindy loves God.  She studied Holy Scripture, read extensively in the writings of Emanuel Swedenborg, and did her best to live according to the precepts and example of Jesus Christ.

Mindy loved social justice, civil rights, and the progressive values of mercy, forgiveness, acceptance, and inclusion.  As a feminist, she supported equal rights and respect for women.  Her childhood neighbor and friend Michael died of AIDS in the 1980s and so she advocated for LGBTQ+ rights and understanding.  Her support for non-violence was based on her upbringing in the Quaker tradition.  She proudly carried her ACLU membership card. 

Mindy loved to be useful to people.  She was active with missions in the churches she attended.  She donated her time and money to local food banks and low-cost spay/neuter organizations. With her beloved 1990 Chevy S-10, she was always ready to help friends move. She helped international students navigate life in the US. She sewed caps for cancer patients and sewed masks during the pandemic. 

Mindy loved her family.  She delighted in her children’s accomplishments and the persons they have grown to be.  From her father, she received a penchant for genealogy and family history.  When she married Ralph, she was happy to have a whole other set of family history to discover.

Mindy loved her husband. She and Ralph met at graduate school when he invited himself to a party at her apartment. They hit it off, and more importantly, Nerd the cat liked Ralph. They had 42 years and 51 weeks of laughter, stories, arguments, adventures, and love.

Mindy was an alumna of Indiana University, earning a Bachelor’s degree in political science and a Master’s in Library Science during the Bobby Knight era.  Later, after living in Lafayette, she decided that “that other school” wasn’t so bad and sent her sons to Purdue. 

Mindy’s outside work included clerking in a SuperX drugstore, file maintenance and clerical work for a Chicago property management company, and reference librarianship for the Indiana University Law Library. 

Mindy began at the International Center of West Lafayette as a volunteer bookkeeper.  She moved into the paid position of Co-Administrator and held that job for 13 years.  She enjoyed meeting people from other countries and promoting cross-cultural understanding.  She organized language classes, international dinners and food bazaars, and trips to local sights. 

In 2011, Mindy began visiting her newly-widowed mother-in-law Alice for several days a week.  In 2013, after Alice suffered a broken hip, Mindy moved to North Vernon to stay with her full-time.  As Alice declined with age, Mindy cared for her 24/7 until Alice’s death in early 2019.

In fall 2019, Mindy joined the staff of Jennings County High School’s Music department as an accompanist for the choirs, as a music cataloger for the bands, and as a substitute teacher.  Covid shutdowns interfered with her work.  She found an unexpected joy and excitement in working with the students. 

Then, in March 2022, she learned she had a rare, inoperable form of cancer.

Mindy was preceded in death by her parents and her sister-in-law Kathy Jester. 

Mindy is mourned by her husband Ralph and their children: Frank, Freda, and Karl.  Her sister Cindy (Gil) Smith with children Andy, Tim, and Amanda, and her brother Conner with children Melissa and Erin also survive her. 

Mindy donated her body to the Anatomical Education Program at Indiana University School of Medicine.  She felt the donation was a way for her to continue to be useful and to contribute to society.

Mindy asked that memorial gifts be made to the International Center of West Lafayette (523 N. Russell, West Lafayette IN 47906) or to the Music Department at Jennings County High School (800 W. Walnut St., North Vernon IN 47265). 

Mindy’s life will be celebrated in a memorial service at 11:15 am on Saturday, April 15, at the First United Methodist Church of North Vernon (240 West Poplar, North Vernon). 

The service will be broadcast in a private livestream.  Please contact the family for the link at mljmemorial@gmail.com. 

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