Riverhead Rotary leader and community volunteer Mel Ellwood dies at 63

Committed Riverhead Rotarian, past president and district governor Mary Ellen “Mel” Ellwood died last Thursday after suffering a sudden illness. She was 63.

The lifelong Riverhead resident spent nearly two decades as a devoted member of Rotary, where she became known as a strong, assertive and deeply principled presence in the Riverhead community.

“Mel was always willing to share and mentor others and her passion for community service and volunteerism was an inspiration to many,” the Rotary Club of Riverhead wrote in a Facebook post celebrating her life on Saturday. 

Rotary president Randy Morreale told the Riverhead News-Review Ms. Ellwood was a “real inspiration for all.”

“She was definitely a role model for all Rotarians in the sense that she was very dignified and structured and a very community-oriented person that all members and all people should really try to accomplish or be,” Mr. Morreale said.

Comments quickly followed as friends, colleagues and community members reflected on her impact.

“I’m so saddened by Mel’s passing,” wrote Joseph Oliver, vice president of the Riverhead Volunteer Ambulance Corps. “She was an absolute sweetheart — always smiling, always willing to help and always knowing the right thing to say. She cared deeply about helping others and making a difference in the community. I will never forget her kindness and the impact she had on so many people. She truly was the definition of community service and caring for others.”

Beth Hanlon described Ms. Ellwood as “the go-to expert for everything Rotary” and said “she will be deeply missed.”

“I feel like a part is missing from our Riverhead Rotary wheel,” Mary Elle Mimi Wood commented. “My condolences to her family and friends, from ‘the other Mary Ellen,’ a designation I will surely miss. I was blessed to know her. Rest in peace, Mel.”

Ms. Ellwood’s volunteer work stretched across the East End. She helped coordinate the Riverhead Country Fair, served as a board member for Riverhead Townscape and was president of the North Fork chapter of the Long Island Board of Realtors.

Parishioners at St. John the Evangelist in Riverhead, St. Rosalie’s Church in Hampton Bays and members of the Peconic Bay Masterworks Choir knew her as a fellow choir member. At The Suffolk theater in Riverhead, she volunteered as an usher and guide during public events and open houses.

She also spent more than 20 years helping North Fork residents navigate the housing market. Ms. Ellwood began her real estate career in 2005 and worked as an associate broker with Douglas Elliman Real Estate in Cutchogue, serving clients throughout Riverhead and Southold towns.

Ms. Ellwood loved spending time with her family: Kevin, Liz, Paul, Lee Patrick, Stephen, Susan and Brian; and her “outlaws” Dorothy “Dot,” Jessica, Lori, Jim and Brie; alongside her 21 nieces and nephews. She was also devoted to and loved her Aunt Elizabeth “Betsy” Comer O’Neill. She was predeceased by her brother Christian and her brother-in law Greg Burns.

Visitation will be take place Thursday, May 14, from 4 to 8 p.m. at McLaughlin Heppner Funeral Home on Marcy Avenue in Riverhead. A funeral mass will be held Friday, May 15, at 10:30 a.m. at St. John the Evangelist R.C. Church in Riverhead, followed by private cremation. 

Memorial donations may be made to the Rotary Club of Riverhead, P.O. Box 1141, Jamesport, NY 11947.