In Lieu of Flowers
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House of Ruth

Service & Burial
Dates and details to come at a later date.

Arlington National Cemetery
1 Memorial Ave
Arlington, VA 22211

Reception
Dates and details to come at a later date.

Fort Myers Officer’s Club
214 Jackson Ave
Arlington, VA 22211

Schele E. Mongeon (Woodruff)
December 29, 1948 – January 27, 2026

Schele E. Mongeon was born on December 29, 1948, in Greeley, Colorado, to Ella M. (Irby) Woodruff and James B. “Jim” Woodruff. At the time, Jim was teaching Industrial Arts at what was then Colorado State College of Education. In 1951, Jim started his 33 year Air Force career. Schele moved frequently – an experience that shaped her lifelong love of travel and taught her to create a home wherever she landed.

Her childhood included time in the Philippines and across the United States, with early years in Lafayette, Indiana; Fairborn, Ohio; and Ellsworth Air Force Base, South Dakota. She graduated from high school with honors in 1967 and was selected as the Rapid City South Dakota Student of the year. She met her future husband, Dan Mongeon, her senior year of high school. After high school she attended Colorado State University for one years before transferring to the University of Arizona. She graduated from college in 1971 with a teaching certificate in English and a minor in French.

In June 1969, Schele married Dan at an outdoor wedding at her great Aunt’s house in Smartsville California. Together they began a life marked by family and adventure. Dan’s 34 year Army career took them to Fort Lee, Virginia; Camp Zama, Japan; Colorado Springs, Colorado; Springdale, Arkansas; Springfield, Virginia; Fort Leavenworth, Kansas; Würzburg, Germany; Mons, Belgium; El Paso, Texas; Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania; Corozal, Panama; Fort Belvoir, Virginia; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; and Fort McPherson, Georgia—18 moves in 34 years. After the Army, Dan worked the next 17 years for an international logistics firm, Agility. Schele often traveled with Dan and especially enjoyed overseas travel. She made friends fast and fully embraced every experience. Throughout their travels Schele worked and taught—including teaching English as a second language in Japan and Belgium and finishing her working career with 18 years in the sales department of ASIS trade magazine. In 1995, they settled in Alexandria, Virginia. In 2009 they bought their dream home which Schele transformed into a family home that would become “fun central” for family gatherings, dinner parties, holidays, and pool parties.

Schele and Dan raised two sons, Matt Mongeon (born in 1976, married to Emily in 2011) and Murphy Mongeon (born in 1978, married to Josie Graham in 2011). She was the proud grandmother of Bryce, Jack, and Evy Mongeon – she loved her nickname “Schele-Schele”. As a grandmother she loved her “babies” and showered them with kindness and love. She relished her time with them. Her role as a mother has been defined by constant presence, thoughtful guidance, and a deep belief in raising independent, capable, and happy people. She always answered the phone, offered steady advice, and showed up when needed.

She was equally devoted as a wife, daughter, sister, aunt, grandmother, sister-in-law, and mother-in-law. She maintained close relationships with her siblings—her big sister Cyd, with whom she often traveled the world; her brother Si, who always had his sisters back. She admired that Si was a “stand-up guy” and that Cyd had a “heart of gold”.  She made it a point to stay connected and get together as often as possible.

A lifelong traveler, Schele visited all seven continents. She stood on Antarctica, saw polar bears in the wild in Canada, cruised the Mississippi River from top to bottom, hiked into Machu Picchu Peru, explored the Galapagos twice, traveled to Cuba, explored Morocco, and hiked Mount Fuji all night to see the sunrise. She also visited many countries including Australia, Thailand, Nepal, India, Ireland, France, Germany, Italy, Greece, and many others. Whether on a Mongeon family adventure or with her close circle of travel friends she cherished each adventure. She chronicled many of these journeys in her blog, scheleandtell.com, sharing stories from the road. She was always ready and excited for the next experience. For her 50^th year wedding anniversary she set a goal of 50 dates, no repeats, in a year and she got it done. 

Schele was known as a gracious host, an amazing cook, and the organizer of family gatherings, reunions and dinners with friends. She co-authored the book “A Girl From Fraser” that recounted her mothers’ life story. The goal was to preserve family history for future generations. She had a close circle of friends—a sisterhood spanning decades. Whether navigating a new country or a crowded kitchen, she approached life as a good sport, willing and fully engaged. She was an excellent conversationalist who always made time for a phone call.

Schele led by example. She found adventures wherever she lived, created home wherever she landed, and remained a steadfast presence for her family and friends. Her life was one of intention, connection and enduring love. She truly impacted many lives with her infectious smile, good humor and loving warmth. She is missed so very much, may she rest in peace.