Jeffrey Peter Ellis, 52 of San Pierre, passed away suddenly on Sunday, June 29, 2025. He was born November 15, 1972, the son of Robert C. and Christine M. (Cisar) Ellis. Jeff recently retired as a millwright, working through the Local 1076 Millwrights Union for 33 years. He enjoyed tending to his farm, attending baseball practices and games for Isaiah, and loved spending time with family. Jeff was always willing to give a helping hand to anyone, and his handyman skills were second to none. Friends and family will also remember his collecting habits, which earned him the name of “Junk Man Jeff”.
Jeff is survived by the love of his life, Venessa Vlach; son, Isaiah Burns; sisters, Gwen (Vince) Amoroso and Liane Ellis; nephews and niece, Vincent, Thomas, and Juliana Amoroso; step-daughters, Amanda Frederick, Brittany Sturgoen, and Destiny Vlach; grandchildren, Sean, Brandy, Lilly, Alivia, Hayden, Jared, Kimberlynn, Kiley, Jacob, and Waylon; and many aunts, uncles, cousins, and friends. He was preceded in death by his parents and stepdaughter, Sylvia Burns.
Visitation will be held on Monday, July 7, 2025 from 3:00-7:00 PM at Moeller Funeral Home 104 Roosevelt Rd., Valparaiso, with a Funeral Service on Tuesday, July 8th at 10:00 AM and burial to follow at San Pierre Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the Family, and they will make a donation to the North Judson Youth Baseball League in Memory of Jeff.
GUESTBOOK
I’m sorry was a complete honor to have met you. -Mike Spence
What a great man he was! I lost my keys inside the steel mill and instead of going home like everyone else Jeff stuck around and helped me break into my truck with his tools where I had an extra set of keys I was able to get home that evening thanks to Jeff!! He will be greatly missed!!!! -Rick Hayes
Even though he wasn’t my biological grandfather he was there since I was little he was like my grandfather and we had so many grate memories mainly when we all would pull his beard and plug his nose and it would make him talk funny. I will always love and miss you paw Jeff. -Kiley Ann Sturgeon
Your family is in our prayers during this very challenging time. I will always think of Jeff very fondly and how we use to joke about his need to find that next best thing in storage lockers. He will be missed very much. Everyone that met Jeff was better for it. -Mike and Kim Lyons
I still remember the day you showed up at USS as a first year apprentice. Eager and wanting to learn and fit in. Which you did quickly. You turned into a great journeyman and an even better supervisor. You and Vanessa made a great team. -Rick Childress
Jeff Ellis was a truly outstanding gentleman—kind-hearted, dedicated, and always willing to lend a hand. As a journeyman millwright, he took great pride in his craft, striving for excellence in every project he touched. But beyond his skill and professionalism, what truly set Jeff apart was his generosity. He consistently went above and beyond, giving his time, effort, and heart to help others succeed. His legacy will live on in the lives he touched, the work he perfected, and the friendships he built along the way. He will be deeply missed and fondly remembered. -Kevin Grooms
There are great men but then there are great men like Jeff who make you want to be a better person. You were always kind and patient. Eager to teach if willing. Very easy to talk with. You have touched lives of many. I count myself blessed to be one. Heaven snagged a great one. God Bless. -Kyle and Hannah Lipnicky
I'm so very sorry for your loss. Jeff was a great friend in middle and high school. We actually went on a double date, but ended being really great friends. Rest easy my friend. -Kathy Skaggs
I love reading all the stories and I truly hope more people post so we can cherish the memories of his life (which was taken way too soon). Gah.... the plans he had.... I'm adding the eulogy that Gwen and Liane (sisters) read at the service on July 8th so that you all can get a sense of how it was to grow up with Jeff as a brother. Jeffrey was excited to enter the world. According to our mother, he was not due until December 21st, but her water broke and he was born around 9 am on November 15th (approximately 5 weeks early!). He was always an energetic child. He never sat still. He was always getting into stuff, tinkering with something, walking (or running) 10 feet ahead of everyone. In fact, when he would stay still for a few moments, he’d realize the emergent need to use the bathroom. This would happen every single time we played a family board game (or penny poker – which our dad taught us). We would all have to wait for Jeff to come out of the bathroom to continue the game. With his energy level high, and no brother to rough and tumble with, his little sisters became the objects of his attention. He would tease us and pick on us, the typical daily sibling rivalry... It made us pretty tough. One Saturday morning when he was about 14 yrs old, we got our revenge. Jeff loved Saturday morning cartoons! He was laying on his belly watching TV when we snuck up behind him and gave him the most epic wedgie of all time! You would think that would have made him pick on us less, but it didn’t. But, we still remember it as a very satisfying moment. Our mom being very thrifty, never gave us money. Dad on the other hand would say “you caught me at a bad time, I have it” and give us cash from his wallet. Jeff’s hard work ethic started with a paper route. All 3 of us delivered the Hammond Times from the approximate ages of 9 to 14. At one time, Jeff had 3 paper routes. Every Sunday our dad would haul us around town to deliver those heavy Sunday newspapers. We would fill up the back of the station wagon, drop the tailgate and ride around town with our feet dangling down inches from the road. We’d jump on and off the tailgate while dad drove. Another memory is driving in the station wagon with our mom and yelling “BUMPERS!”. She would drive full speed over the railroad tracks so that we, unseatbelted kids, in the backseat would fly up in the air and hit our heads on the top of the car. That was like a carnival ride to us. Jeff was a mamma’s boy. In his teenage years, no matter how late he stayed out, he would always wake up mom and say “mom, I’m home”. Meanwhile, us girls would be sneaking in and out of the house (sometimes even in and out the window!). So, although parents say they don’t have favorite children, it was pretty clear who mom’s favorite was. In our adult years, Jeff became someone we could always count on. While there were times that we wouldn’t see him much, we knew that if we needed something he would always be there to help. He never turned away a person in need. He had such a wide array of skills - he was smart, handy and an overall useful person. Although we all knew how skilled he was, he never ceased to amaze us. Once we asked “when did you put that porch addition on your house?” His answer “oh, I built that last week”. If anything, his strong point of being a hard worker, was also his weakness – he worked hard - often too hard. He had high expectations for himself. After retirement, he had big plans to build up his farm and spend time with his family, especially Isaiah. Anything and everything he did on the farm and for Isaiah brought him joy. He loved all of his family and friends. Jeffrey, you will be missed. -Gwendolyn Amoroso
