“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.”
— 2 Timothy 4:7, NIV
The Talery and Lansanah Families announce with deep sorrow, the death of their Mother, Grandmother, Great-Grandmother, Sister, Cousin and Aunty, Deaconess Mother Olive Tenneh Lansanah-Talery, affectionately called “Teacher Talery, Ma Tenneh, OTT” of Gaye Town, Old Road. This sad event occurred on Tuesday, November 4, 2025 at the 14 Military Hospital after a protracted period of illness.
She leaves to mourn her children: Cllr. Tonieh A. Talery-Wiles, Alfred E. Talery Jr., Leisel Y. Talery, Karmo June Talery, Lansanah Talery, Marilla Talery-Lofdahl, Charlesetta Talery-Reeves, Dr. Edwin Sumowor, Clavena Payman, Mavolo Cooper and John Venn;
She also leaves to mourn 18 sisters and brothers( three predeceased her -Antoinette Jemah Lansanah, Ambassador Jallah D. Lansanah Jr., Sunday Lansanah) ; 27 grand children, 32 great grand children, nephews, nieces; and a host of other relatives in Liberia (Golodee Lansanah, Bomi County), Nigeria, Europe, and the USA.
We thank and praise the Lord Almighty for giving us Teacher Talery. We appreciate her love and dedication to family, as well as her immense contribution to society and humanity during her journey on this earth. We mourn her loss, but celebrate a life well lived. Teacher Talery will be remembered as a loving mother, a dedicated servant of God, and the Matriarch of our family. She was also a career educator, a reservoir of knowledge, and a pillar of faith. We cherish her memory in our hearts and will forever honor her legacy.
She is not dead. She has transitioned from mortality to immortality and is now resting in the presence of her Lord and Savior. She fought a good fight and finished her course. The tree did not fall; death did not conquer; she answered her Lord’s call from labor to rest. May her soul rest in perfect peace.
The remains of Deaconess Talery will be removed from the A. B. Anderson Funeral Services on Lynch Street on Thursday, December 4th, 2025 at 4:00 PM and taken to the E. Harding Smythe United Methodist Church on Smythe Road for one night of wake keeping in songs from 6:00–8:00 PM.
Funeral rites will be said on Friday, December 5th, 2025 at the same church (E. Harding Smythe United Methodist Church on Smythe Road) at 10:00 AM. Interment will take place immediately thereafter at the Kaiser Memorial Lawn Cemetery in Brewerville.
Consistent with the wish of the deceased, no verbal tributes will be paid during the wake keeping. Friends and sympathizers identifying with the family and wishing to eulogize her may do so through songs and laying of natural flowers.
Families to contact are:
1.Cllr. Tonieh A. Talery-Wiles, Daughter of the Deceased
Cell: 0886516303 / 0777516303
2.Alfred E. Talery Jr., Son of the Deceased
Phone: +1 (267) 904-5882 | Bristol, PA, USA
3.Leisel Y. Talery, Daughter of the Deceased
Cell: 0777955972 / 0886814278
4.Cllr. J. Bema Lansanah, Brother of the Deceased
Cell: 0886517947 / 0777517047
**In honor of Teacher Talery’s lifelong devotion to education and children, the family is establishing the Olive Tenneh Talery Educational Fund to support students in need in Liberia. Those who wish to contribute may do so via :
Cash App: $Tocha (6098514064) or
Zelle: 609-851-4064 (Tocha Torruellas) or Sendwave: +231 88 729 0829 (Tocha Wiles)
