Jeff Menhart passed away on August 23 2023 at his home in Portland, Oregon which ended a 10-year struggle from a Glioblastoma Multiforme (GBM). His determination and faith in God allowed him to remain in the .005% national survivor rate for this rare brain cancer.
He was predeceased by his parents, John and Carol Menhart. Born in Cleveland and forever a Browns fan, Jeff also loved his alma mater, Ohio State University. He was a graduate of Brecksville High School where he played football and never forgot his lifelong friends. He was an avid golfer, fisherman, and deer hunter. A member of the Buckeye Big Buck Club he proudly displayed his deer mounts in the garage. The highlight of every year was when he joined the greatest group of deer hunters at a cabin in Marietta, whom he loved as brothers.
Jeff was a great grill master. Each Memorial Day Brittany Lane party, neighbors would look forward to his grilled chicken and famous ‘Batman Sauce’. After fishing once in Vancouver, BC he brought back a salmon large enough to feed the entire neighborhood. Jeff was a successful small business owner who obtained two construction product patents for his company, Designer Glass International LTD. After fifteen years this led to a buyout from a New York company enabling him to retire at age 58.
Jeff and his wife Colette Mazza were residents of Upper Arlington for 35 years, where they raised their two children Brie and Johnny. He was a member of the UA Lutheran Church. He was a proud father and actively engaged in their football, lacrosse, softball, and volleyball activities. In 2003 he hosted the entire UA football team to a feast of sixteen grilled pork loins.
Jeff loved his boat and taught many of his children’s friends to ski on the Scioto River. It was beautiful to watch him slalom water ski, of which he declared himself ‘poetry in motion’. He loved their summer home on Lake Erie and spent the last two years of his time in Ohio living there. He spent nearly every day of summer on his boat and enjoyed watching the amazing sunset from our deck sipping his Scotch on the rocks.
In 2015 Colette & Jeff moved to Portland to be near their grandchildren who called him Papa. He took Carter (10) to Builders Club at Home Depot and always let Autumn (7) beat him at Hangman. He was most proud to be called Dad by his loving children, Brie and Johnny, who always made him laugh. The last time he was in Columbus was for his son Johnny and Erica’s wedding where he tapped to the oldies music from his wheelchair and embraced his new daughter-in-law.
To Colette, his wife of 42 years, he was a great big, beautiful presence whom she was proud to call her husband. She loved his writings, letters, and cards; his love of National Geographic magazine, his unending devotion to Cleveland, how he could fix anything, his sense of humor and playfulness.
