By Sonja Reis

As you may already know, McKees Rocks lost a treasure last week.

Denise Darcell Zellous, known to much of the McKees Rocks area as “Missy,” died unexpectedly March 7, 2025.

A 1972 graduate of Sto-Rox High School and a mother of five, she was the founder of the nonprofit Zellous Hope Project. Zellous survived incarceration, addiction, depression and the loss of three sons. In 2000, Zellous became the first enrollee at the early recovery program at Bethlehem Haven where she found sobriety and her second act

“God, I’m now a source of Hope,” she would tell people.

Her nonprofit started out as a “hope chest” program for the at risk population, returning citizens, and individuals and families that had transitioned from homelessness and have barriers to employment or are in need of essentials for the home. She first ran it from her apartment in the Elliott neighborhood of Pittsburgh and later from McKees Rocks.

“Denise Zellous was one of those people. She was brutally honest, caring, compassionate, and giving. She shared her struggles with us all to help us through our own pain and challenges. She gave credit to others when she was at the core of most of it,” wrote Pittsburgh Councilmember Theresa Kail-Smith on her Facebook page.

“Although she moved to the Rocks years ago, her passing leaves a void that no one can replace in many District 2 neighborhoods. My sincere condolences to her family and loved ones. Thank you for sharing her with so many of us for so long. She taught us a lot, mostly how to love unconditionally, including ourselves,”Kail-Smith wrote.

In 2012, Zellous became a Jefferson Award for Public Service recipient. In 2013, April 23 was named “Denise Zellous Day” in the City of Pittsburgh.

And with all the awards and accolades, the Hope Project continued to evolve. The hope chests still played a staring role, as the project made room for other types of helping hands. Workforce development became a focus with things like transportation to job sites until first pay, interview or work clothing, and simple car repairs for work vehicles. Application assistance, program referrals, community engagement events and the Original Guardians soon followed.

“Denise was the rarest of genius: she could craft a vision for her community’s future while meeting the needs of her neighbors today at whatever level was most critical, and through lived experience demonstrated her mantra of ‘triumph over trauma,’ said Taris Vrcek, MRCDC executive director.

“She was an unstoppable force that commanded respect in any room. The impact of her loss can’t be adequately put into words, but it will be felt by all the lives she touched.

A Visitation and Home Going Service will be held for Denise Darcell Zellous at Pneuma Worship Center, 700 Yunker St., McKees Rocks on Saturday, March 15.