A mass of Christian burial was celebrated Jan. 22 at St. John the Baptist Church for Elva Mary Merrick, 73, a lifelong resident of Jersey City. She passed away Jan. 16. Elva was a dedicated educator and sister, aunt, cousin and friend. Elva attended Saint Aloysius Elementary school and Saint Aloysius Academy. She earned an undergraduate and master’s degree in education from Seton Hall University and an additional master’s degree in education from Columbia University. Elva volunteered her time and traveled the world to improve the lives of others through enrichment and learning and spent the majority of her career as a teacher in the Jersey City school system. For the past 10 years, Elva taught at Project Renewal in NYC, an organization that works to improve the lives of homeless men and women in New York City, by helping to move them from homelessness to independent living. Elva is survived by her sister, Joan Merrick O’Connor, of Little Silver, as well as a niece and nephew and their spouses and numerous grandnieces and grandnephews. Elva was predeceased by her brother, Albert Edward Merrick. Services arranged by the McLaughlin Funeral Home, Jersey City.