02/10/2026
Jerry Lee Bailey, 83, of Gahanna, Ohio, formerly of Cleveland and Canton, Ohio, passed away peacefully, Feb. 2, 2026. Lee graduated from The Ohio State University with a Bachelor of Journalism degree in 1965. He began his career as a
newsman and worked in all facets of journalism: radio, newspaper, and television and as a reporter at WEWS Channel 5 in Cleveland. He was a pioneer in the field of investigative reporting and won a 1974 Emmy Award for Individual Achievement. In 1983, Lee left the news business for Public Relations at the Cleveland Electric Illuminating Company, then Centerior Energy, from which Lee retired.
Lee served on the boards of the Cleveland Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists and the Cleveland Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America.
In retirement, he served on the Gahanna Parks & Recreations Foundation council. Lee volunteered for the Melanoma Research Fund.
Lee loved the Ohio State Buckeyes. He was a life member and past President of the OSU Alumni Club of Greater Cleveland.
Funeral services will be held at noon on Thursday, Feb. 12 at Schoedinger Northeast Chapel, 1051 East Johnstown Rd, Gahanna, Ohio.
The family will receive friends from 10 A.M. until the service.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions can be made to: Zusman Community Hospice (www.whv.org/donate/) or Melanoma Research Foundation
(melanoma.org)