Geralyn “Gera” Duska-mcewen

GAHANNA - Geralyn “Gera” Duska-mcewen, 61, of Gahanna, passed away at home on June 24, 2022 after a long battle with endometrial cancer. She was born in Steubenville, Ohio on February 21, 1961 to Andrew and Barbara Duska. In addition to her father, Gera was preceded in death by her stillborn brother Timmy. Gera will be remembered for her strong Christian faith, her boundless compassion for people and animals, her intelligent mind and creative spirit. After growing up in Mingo Junction, Ohio, and attending Steubenville Catholic Central High School, she earned her Bachelor of Science (Microbiology) and Master of Science (Veterinary Pathology) degrees from The Ohio State University. She was employed by Ross Laboratories/abbott Nutrition for over three decades, retiring in 2018 as a Senior Research Scientist. She made significant contributions to the Alimentum hypoallergenic infant formula program and the technology supporting Human Milk Oligosaccharides, for which she was granted numerous patents. She enjoyed traveling and hiking, especially at Lake Louise in the Canadian Rockies, Yosemite National Park, and Wales. Like her mother, Gera had a passion for flowers and she was delighted to visit Monet’s Garden in Giverny, France and the Keukenhof gardens in The Netherlands. As a woman of strong Christian faith, she devoted much of her energy to Dwell Community Church. In her spare time, Gera could often be found working on one of her many arts and crafts projects. She adored her dogs, and over the decades Raleigh, Buddy, Kenny, Dusty and Sally were intelligent, active and well-loved family members. Gera was also a voracious reader. Gera will be greatly missed by her husband of 31 years, John Mcewen. She is also survived by her mother, Barbara Duska of Mingo Junction, sister Andrea Duska of Mingo Junction, brother Michael (Jill) Duska of Mingo Junction, sister-in-law Mary Ann (Grant) Fish of Galloway, Ohio, brother-in-law Jeff Mcewen of Grandview, Ohio, and many cousins, nieces, nephews and friends. Gera had especially close relationships with her cousin Katrina Miguel, nephews Jacob and Andrew Duska, niece Elizabeth Shoemaker, and dear friend Jonathan Porter of Sandwich, England. The family would like to especially thank the hospice nurses and staff of Ohiohealth’s Kobacker House for their wonderful care of Gera these last two months. A Celebration of Life will be held at 11am on Saturday, July 9th at Dwell Community Church (1394 Community Park Drive, Columbus, Ohio). In lieu of flowers, donations in Gera’s memory may be made to Kobacker House.