Roberta, GA- Jaloo Ilene (Olson) Zelonis, 73, passed away peacefully in the early morning of Thursday, September 19, 2019 at Pine Pointe Hospice in Macon, Georgia with her beloved husband by her side. A funeral mass will be held at 1:00 pm on Saturday, October 5, 2019 at St. Juliana Catholic Church, 804 Martin Luther King Jr Dr, Fort Valley, GA 31030. A memorial service to celebrate her life will be held at 1:00 pm on Sunday, October 13, 2019 at Theatre Macon, 438 Cherry St, Macon, GA 31201. Inurnment will be held at 11:00 am on Tuesday, October 15, 2019 at Magnolia Park Mausoleum.
Jaloo was born on April 9, 1946 to the late Virgil and Martha (Strack) Olson in Dekalb, Illinois and spent many years of her early life in Panama. She earned her Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Northern Illinois University and later received two Masters degrees from both Golden Gate University in San Francisco and Loma Linda University. Jaloo was a Captain (O-6) in the United States Public Health Service for twenty-seven years. She served in its Rapid Response Team at first aid stations at Ground Zero following the 9/11 attacks. Jaloo was also deployed to the Rwandan Crisis, where she assisted in a camp of over five thousand displaced children and taught them to do the Hokey Pokey. At one time during her career, Jaloo acted as a nursing consultant for all Indian reservations in the state of Montana. After she retired, Jaloo became an active member of the American Red Cross and assisted on the coast of Alabama after Hurricane Katrina. Jaloo was an extremely talented performer, and she became a staple in the middle Georgia theatre community. She performed in dozens of plays and musicals in all of the theatres of our area and made so many dear friends during her time on and off stage. She is preceded in death by her brother, Sky Olson. Jaloo will be deeply missed by all who knew her.
Left to cherish her beloved memory is loving husband of forty-nine years, Tony Zelonis; her daughter, Kim (John) Dale; grandchildren, A.J. and Lola Dale, and sisters, Janaan Kitchen and Keetjie Ramo.
Please visit www.burpeescottmemorialchapel.com to sign the online guest book, light a memorial candle and to view the video tribute for the family. It is with great honor that Burpee-Scott Memorial Chapel & Crematory has been entrusted with arrangements.