Mary Ellen Slone, a pioneer in Lexington advertising and communications, died November 6 at the age of 78. She founded one of Lexington’s early agencies, MER Advertising, in 1974, which later became Meridian Communications, and after a merger, Meridian-Chiles, which closed in 2014. She was named to Kentucky’s Advertising Hall of Fame. Councilmember Kathy Plomin wrote, “Mary Ellen was indeed a mentor for many of us who were watching her in admiration of all she was doing in her own special way. She was ambitious and smart but had so much fun along the way. I learned much from MER as she set the pace for women especially in the field of communications.” Memorial contributions are suggested to the Alzheimer’s Foundation of America; Bluegrass Hospice Care; Good Shepherd Episcopal Church; or the Lexington Humane Society (1600 Old Frankfort Pike, Lexington, KY 40504).
