Dan Pelzer

Dan Pelzer, 92, passed away peacefully on July 1, 2025 in Columbus.

Dan was born March 19, 1933, to John and Geneva Pelzer in Detroit. He was deeply devoted to his wife of 52 years, Mary Lou Pelzer, who passed away in 2024, and the couple's children and spouses, Marci Pelzer and James LeDuc and John and Amy Pelzer. Dan found immense joy in grandchildren Sarah, Lauren and Owen Pelzer, and numerous nieces and nephews. Besides Mary Lou, he was predeceased by his parents and his sister, Rita Maxey.

Dan claimed he graduated from Detroit Catholic Central High School second from the bottom of his class. A Marine Korean War veteran, he was stationed in London for three years, eventually earning a Bachelor’s Degree in Education and a Master’s Degree in Political Science from the University of Detroit. Endlessly curious, he ran for political office, completed coursework toward a doctorate and was a Jesuit seminarian for 8 months. His work experience included substituting as a social studies teacher on a TV show and working security at a nightclub. From 1970 to his retirement in 2000, he was a social worker for the Ohio Department of Youth Services at the former TICO.

Dan’s love of reading and libraries blossomed in 1962 while he served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Nepal. After discovering a library of about 150 paperbacks, he started documenting every book he read. Over the next six decades, he read more than 3,500 books, his reading tastes tracking closely with his unpretentious nature. While Dan conquered all the classics and read every volume to the end, he much preferred John Grisham to James Joyce, calling Ulysses “pure torture.”

During his long and happy retirement, Dan volunteered a few days each week at the St. Lawrence Haven meal program, worked as a “towel boy” at the downtown YWCA and spent plenty of time playing chess, reading and pursuing spiritual activities. Mary Lou and Dan were among the first residents at the Villas at St. Therese when it opened in 1999. In recent years, Dan devoted himself to Mary Lou’s care, visiting every day after she moved across campus to Mother Angeline McCrory Manor in 2021. He followed her to McCrory in June of this year.

We will celebrate Dan’s life at Mother Angeline McCrory Manor, 5199 East Broad Street, on Friday, July 11, with visitation at 9:00 AM, followed by a Mass of Christian burial at 10:00 AM with a reception to follow. In lieu of flowers, donations to Kinship Community Food Center 2610 N. Martin Luther King Jr. Dr., Milwaukee, WI 53212 are appreciated.  You could also honor Dan by reading “a real page turner.” 

The Mass of Christian burial will be livestreamed and can be accessed by clicking here.