Jay Ross

Jay Dee Ross, age 86, of Ortonville, MN, passed away on Thursday, May 7, 2026, at Ortonville Area Health Services Hospital.

Private services will be held at a later date.

Jay Dee Ross was born on March 27, 1940, in Ortonville, MN, to Leonard and Laura (Stowell) Ross. He was raised in Ortonville and graduated from Ortonville High School before continuing his education at St. Cloud State University and Reed College in Portland, OR, where he earned his Master’s degree in Mathematics.

On August 25, 1962, Jay married the love of his life, Gloria Scherer. Together, they built a life centered around family, education, and community, sharing more than 63 years of marriage.

Jay began his teaching career in Hancock, MN, before teaching in Wheaton, MN, and eventually returning to his hometown of Ortonville in 1970. He dedicated nearly three decades to educating students until his retirement in 1999. In addition to teaching math, Jay coached football, basketball, and baseball, leaving a lasting impact on generations of students and athletes.

Outside the classroom, Jay was an avid outdoorsman who loved hunting and fishing. In his younger years, he treasured times spent with childhood friends: Lanny Beckman and Duane Hanson. He passed his passion for the outdoors on to his children through countless fishing and hunting trips. In recent years, Jay especially enjoyed prairie dog hunting trips in western South Dakota with Gloria and his sons, proudly holding the family record for a remarkable 864-yard shot.

Jay was also an entrepreneur who started and operated his own computer business. Following his retirement, he remained deeply involved in the community as an active school board member, a member of the Ortonville School Foundation, and a former Sunday School teacher.

A lifelong lover of history and storytelling, Jay devoted much of his retirement to writing. He authored four books documenting WWII stories from residents of Big Stone County, created family heritage books for each of his children, and wrote a memoir about his own childhood growing up in Ortonville, so that both his memories and the stories of others would live on for future generations. Jay kept his mind sharp through daily crossword puzzles and online trivia competitions with his brother, Bob, where he was known for being impossible to beat.

He is survived by this wife, Gloria; his children: Chuck (Diane) Ross of Battle Lake, MN; Michael (LeAnn) Ross of Cedar, MN; Allan (Lisa) Ross of Ortonville, MN; and LeeAnn (Tony) Lemke of Clarissa, MN; 11 grandchildren; 10 great-grandchildren; his brother, Robert (Mary) Ross of Ortonville, MN; and brother-in-law, Jim (Karol) Scherer of Ortonville, MN.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Leonard and Laura Ross; his grandson, Trevor Solem; and his brothers: Warren (Dale) Ross and Jerry Ross.

Jay Dee will be remembered for his sharp mind, dedication to education, love of family, passion for the outdoors, and commitment to preserving the stories and history of those around him. His legacy lives on through the many lives as he touched as a teacher, coach, writer, husband, father, grandfather and friend to many.