We are absolutely devastated to share that we unexpectedly lost our “Mimi” in the early morning hours of Monday, July 20th, 2026, at Margaret Mary Health in Batesville, Indiana. She was only 55 years old.
Michelle was born to Frank and Dolores (DeSio) Pontillo on January 5th, 1971, in Chicago. As a young girl, severe scoliosis required Michelle to undergo a major spinal fusion surgery. While this would unfortunately cause her trouble and pain for the rest of her life, Michelle absolutely refused to let the pain stop her from living life to the fullest. Michelle graduated from Queen of Peace High School in Burbank, Illinois in 1989. As a young adult, she and her friends would spend their time hanging out in the neighborhood and attending concerts of all kinds. Her friend Karla says that “music and concerts were her jam!”
Michelle and Patrick Pemberton Jr. were married at St. Rene Goupil Catholic Church in Chicago on January 25th, 1992. They welcomed their first daughter, Lauren (Matthew Anderson), on May 18th, 1992, followed by Krystin (Matthew White) on July 4th, 1994. The Pemberton family eventually moved to the suburbs to raise their girls. Michelle was well-known for throwing the absolute best birthday parties, whether they were held at the local park or right in the front yard of the house. She was also famously the mom who took the neighbor kids to school, crammed into her “clown car.” While the daughters, as well as those neighbor kids, loved it when she worked at the Cookies by Design store, it was working with the oral and maxillofacial surgeon at Palos Medical Group in Tinley Park, Illinois, where Michelle’s passions for learning and helping people truly belonged.
In 2006, a new career opportunity relocated the family to Sunman, Indiana. There, Michelle continued to bring her vast skill set, compassion, and lots of laughter to local dentistry offices. She excelled in these roles because she was truly a master with her hands. Michelle was an artist, a chef, a baker, and a decorator of all things. Her girls always had the coolest birthday cakes and the absolute best take-home art projects. The family homes featured craft and cake decorating cabinets that were always literally overflowing with supplies for Michelle to create beautiful things, both on her own and alongside her girls.
Despite Lauren and Krystin’s initial dislike of the move to Indiana, Michelle gained two sons here, Matthew Anderson and Matthew White, whom she loved as her own and who loved her back just the same. Even before the girls got married, whenever the couples had minor spats, we would joke that Michelle would take the boys’ side over her own daughters’. That was just her way—she loved everyone like family, whether they officially were yet or not.
On August 19th of 2019, Michelle was promoted to her favorite title, Mimi, when Krystin and Matthew welcomed baby Ava Louise. The silver lining of COVID-19 was that it allowed Mimi to spend lots of time with Ava as she grew up. If Michelle loved her girls to the moon and back, she loved Ava Louise to the end of the galaxy. It was a well-known truth that after Ava was born, Mimi’s favorite was no longer tied between her daughters—it was Ava, a defeat her girls can accept gracefully. Though not biologically related, Ava’s cousins Makenzie and Stella also lovingly called Michelle “Mimi,” and she blessed them with that same grandmotherly love. This summer, Mimi surely made memories with the kids that not only she cherished but they can look back on fondly as well. They spent priceless time together doing crafts, hanging out by the pool, and putting on singing and dancing performances that Mimi would judge with zero bias.
After the pandemic, Michelle gladly returned to her job at Batesville Dental. Though she deeply loved her work, her patients, and her coworkers, her health over the last couple of years required her to step away. There were numerous ER visits and specialist follow-ups involving her heart and immune system. Following her longest hospital stay, Ava’s fifth birthday had to be celebrated in the rehab unit of The Willows of Greensburg. We all made the absolute best of that celebration, and Ava even rode her first scooter right there in Mimi’s “hotel” bedroom—which was Ava’s special name for the facility. To Michelle, the location never mattered because her family was all together.
That’s just who Mimi was—she cared about people, not things. She never drove fancy cars, nor did she care for expensive jewelry or name brand ANYTHING. Human connection was what she truly cherished. As much as we wouldn’t want to admit it to her face, Mimi was a professional at making people laugh. She was a short woman with a giant personality who always looked a decade younger than she was. She had fun spending time with her and Patrick’s friends, or catching up with old friends on Facebook. When her health permitted, Patrick and Michelle enjoyed taking the side-by-side out to grab a bite to eat or simply take in the local scenery. Mimi never wanted presents for birthdays or Christmas; time with her loved ones was the only gift she ever wanted.
We truly did not think she was that sick this time. She had been doing so well physically before entering the hospital, having successfully stopped several medications and regaining the independence to drive herself around again. We are all completely blindsided by her sudden passing. Learning how to move forward without our Mimi feels entirely impossible right now.
Those of us left behind to carry both the heavy pain of her loss and the joy of her memory are her devoted husband of 34 years, Patrick Pemberton Jr.; her best friends and daughters, Lauren (Matthew) Anderson and Krystin (Matthew) White; and her adored granddaughter, Ava White. She is also survived by her siblings, Donna Pontillo and Frank (Donna) Pontillo, as well as Dawn Jensen, Nicole (Mike) Costanza, and Gina (Daniel) Gallagher, who she grew up with and who were “aunties” to Lauren and Krystin.
Michelle was preceded in death by her parents, Dolores and Frank Pontillo; her brother, Michael Pontillo; and her parents-in-law, Nancy and Patrick Pemberton Sr.
Michelle wished to be cremated. She never would have wanted us to spend days crying in a funeral home, church, and cemetery, so there will be no traditional services. Plans for a celebration of life will be made once our heads stop spinning. We will share those details in time with the many people who loved her, both in the Cincinnati tri-state area as well as in Chicago.
Family and friends may share memories or messages of comfort for Michelle’s family in the online guestbook at www.meyersfuneralhomes.com.