Constance Marie "Connie" Ponder

Constance Marie ("Connie") Campbell Ellington Ponder passed away peacefully on August 20, 2025, at the age of 75. A lifelong resident of Oberlin, Ohio, Connie dedicated her career to serving the children and families of her community through recreation, education, and youth development.

Born on Valentine's Day 1950, Connie was the eldest of Albert (“Jake”) and Margaret Jane Campbell’s seven children. As a descendant of the well-known Wall family on her mother’s side, she could trace her roots in Oberlin back to the middle of the nineteenth century.

Connie graduated from Oberlin High School in 1968. The previous year she made history as the school’s first Black homecoming queen. Shortly after graduation, she married Raymond Ellington, and they welcomed their son, Raymond Jr., in October 1968. After her first marriage ended in divorce, Connie married Elrod Albert Ponder, Jr., in 1984.

Connie's career reflected her deep commitment to community service. She worked in dining services at Oberlin College while still in high school and was employed by the Oberlin Co-op Book Store from 1971 to 1978, except for a short interlude when she worked as a community service officer for the City of Oberlin. In 1979 she was hired by Oberlin College’s

athletics department, where she remained until 1983. From 1984 to 1993 she held various jobs with the Oberlin City Schools, including bus driver, cafeteria cashier, study hall monitor, and Prospect School librarian.

In 1993 Oberlin’s city manager hired Connie to be the town’s Recreation Coordinator, a position that was later expanded and retitled Recreation Superintendent. Over the next two

decades, she built and led comprehensive recreation programs that served thousands of local children and their families. Her programs included after-school care, summer playground activities, Midnight Basketball, various sports camps, and an annual summer basketball tournament. She adopted a highly inclusive approach, ensuring that all children had access to quality programming regardless of their family's financial circumstances. Throughout her career, she employed dozens of young people, creating a pipeline of mentorship and opportunity.

Beyond her professional duties, Connie served on the boards of various local non-profit organizations, including Oberlin Cable Co-op and Oberlin Community Services (OCS), where she was Board president. She was known for her encyclopedic knowledge of Oberlin, for her direct communication style, and for her unwavering advocacy for the community's children. In April 2024, the City of Oberlin dedicated the Connie Ellington-Ponder Activity Room at the Oberlin Enrichment and Activity Center, located at the former Prospect School.

Connie was preceded in death by her husband Elrod Ponder, her parents Albert and Margaret Campbell, and her sisters Tina Hanibal and Rita Radney. She is survived by her son Raymond Ellington Jr. (Heather), her grandson Raymond Ellington 3rd, her first husband Raymond Ellington, her brothers Gregory and Jeffrey Campbell, and her sisters Kathy Campbell-Curl and Jacqueline Doane (William).

A public celebration of Connie Ponder’s life will be held at The Lodge of New Russia Township on November 16, 2025.

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