Marilee Dawn (Summerson) Ball

WELLSVILLE- Marilee D. (Summerson) Ball, 65, died on Monday, December 9, 2019 at UPMC Pinnacle Community Osteopathic Hospital. She was the wife of Michael C. Ball to whom she was married for 44 years. A celebration of life tribute service will be held at 2 p.m. on Saturday, January 4, 2020 at Heffner Funeral Chapel & Crematory, Inc., 1551 Kenneth Rd., York with Pastor Judith McKee officiating. A visitation will be from 1-2 p.m. prior to the service. Born on January 1, 1954 in York, she was a daughter of the late Donald Summerson (Roma) and E. JoAnn Kump (Paul). Marilee worked as the infection control coordinator at the Polyclinic Medical Center during the early years of the HIV/AIDS epidemic, developing safe practices for all staff and conducting employee and community programs about HIV/AIDS. She retired as the nurse director for the West Shore Endoscopy Center and the former Jackson Gastroenterology, now Jackson Siegelbaum Gastroenterology. She held a Master’s Degree in Health Administration and was a Certified Gastrointestinal Registered Nurse (CGRN). Mrs. Ball was active in the Society of Gastroenterology Nurses & Associates (SGNA) on both state and national levels. She served as President of PASGNA and was a member of a national SGNA committee that defines the standards under which gastrointestinal nurses practice. She also served as chairperson of this committee. She was a member of a SGNA delegation to China through “People to People” and enjoyed competing in orienteering competitions as a member of the Susquehanna Valley Orienteering Club. Marilee was an animal lover who volunteered at the York SPCA, Helen Krause Animal Foundation and was an adopter of four retired racing greyhounds. Along with her husband, Michael, Marilee is survived by three brothers, Kevin Summerson (Claudia), Jeff Summerson (Connie) and Terry Summerson (Jill); sister, Sherri Denker (Ted); step siblings, Cindy Hippensteel (Don), Michael Kump (Janice), Rachel Grimes (Tony) and Rebecca Bankert (Sam); brothers- and sisters-in-law, Gregory Ball (Deb), David Ball (Sherri) and Nancy Lanz (John); and many nieces and nephews whom she loved very much. She was preceded in death by her mother-in-law, Nancy Riffle; father-in-law, Raymond Ball; and brother-in-law, Jeff Ball. Memorial contributions may be made to Personalized Greyhounds, Inc. at pgreys.org or the SPCA, 3159 N. Susquehanna Trail, York, PA 17406. The family wants to thank Dr. Jose Misas and the entire staff of the Pinnacle Health Women’s Cancer Center for their support and friendship throughout Marilee’s 11-year struggle with ovarian cancer.