Zara Lou Bisson

Zara Bisson, age 102, of Dayton, died Monday September 25, 2023. She was born Zara Lou Landis in Pleasant Hill, Ohio to Ola and Forrest Landis, middle child in a family of 5 children, and raised in the Church of the Brethren. After graduating from Newton High School she worked several jobs, especially as an expert typist at Wright Patterson Air Force Base during WWII.

She met Lt. Col. Roland Paul Bisson of the Signal Corps-Air Corps; they married in 1946, moved from Covington to Dayton, and raised two children, Terrence and Debra. As an early member of the Community Methodist Church, Zara was very involved in Methodist Women circles, helping with food banks and craftwork for bazaars, and later with worldwide outreach projects for the monthly "Mission Sundays" there. She was also active with Girl Scouts, Dayton Museum of Natural History, and as literacy volunteer and election poll worker.

Zara believed in treating all people fairly, and reaching out to others in need, locally and globally. She loved nature and travel, with family vacation travel by trailer throughout North America, and later international travel. She loved music and reading, and passed this on to her children.

Zara was preceded in death by her siblings Vier, Otis, Gail, and Ila Jean, and she is survived by Debra, Terrence and his wife Mary, and nephew Rik Minnich and other nephews and nieces and their descendents.

The family will receive friends on Monday October 2, 2023 from 10-11am at the Community Methodist Riverside Church, 339 Meyer Ave., Dayton, OH 45431. The service will follow at 11am. Zara will be laid to rest with her husband at Miami Memorial Park in Covington, OH at 1pm.

In lieu of flowers, consider donations to Mobility International USA or to Heifer International.

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