Obituaries

Apr 15, 2019

Paul E. Vogelsong Paul E. Vogelsong, 92, of Defiance, passed away Monday morning, April 15th, 2019 at Mercy Hospital of Defiance. He was born in Defiance County on March 21, 1927, he was the son of the late Lawrence and Nettie (Donley) Vogelsong. Paul was the husband of Wanda Jean (Sobieck) Vogelsong. They were married May 19, 1945. He had...

Apr 12, 2019

LaDonna Amelia Ruhe, age 76 of Ayersville, passed away on Friday, April 12, 2019 at St. Vincent Mercy Medical Center in Toledo, Ohio. She was born on August 20, 1942 to the late Leo and Lidvina (Meyer) Hilvers in Ft. Jennings, Ohio. On July 3, 1965 she married Arnold Ruhe, who resides in Ayersville.

LaDonna was an...

Apr 10, 2019

DEFIANCE - Edward Vittorio, 77, passed away peacefully surrounded by his loving family on April 10, 2019 at CHP Defiance Area  Inpatient Hospice Center.

He was born on February 4, 1942, a son of the late Edward Rosario Vittorio and Donalda (Jones) Vittorio in Indianapolis, Indiana.  He graduated from  Emmerich Manual High School in Indianapolis, Indiana in...

Apr 10, 2019

Mary Lou Zachrich, age 89 of Ayersville, passed away on Wednesday evening, April 10, 2019, at CHP Defiance Area Inpatient Hospice Center. She was born on June 19, 1929, in Defiance to the late Galen and Ruth (Keller) Schelling. On October 29, 1949, she married Paul F. Zachrich, who preceded her in death on May 14, 2017.

...

Apr 5, 2019

Norma Jean Mansfield, 89, of Defiance, passed away on Friday, April 5, 2019 at Twin Rivers Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, Defiance, OH. She was born on September 11, 1929 to Charles and Lillian (Huffman) Ort in Defiance, Ohio.  On July 31, 1949 she married Orwin Mansfield, who preceded her in death on July 24, 2012. Norma Jean was a...

Apr 5, 2019

Gregory P. Engelhaupt, age 71 of Defiance, passed away early Friday morning, April 5, 2019 at Akron City Hospital in Akron, Ohio. He was born on April 11, 1947 to the late Robert and Rosemarie (Reiser) Engelhaupt in Defiance. Greg proudly served our country in the U.S. Army during the Vietnam War. In 1972 he was in a bad...

Apr 5, 2019

Margaret R. Keller-Free, 91, of Defiance, passed away on Friday, April 5, 2019 at her residence in Kingsbury Place, Defiance, OH. She was born on April 30, 1927 to Linus and Anna (Weber) Froelich in Defiance, OH.  On June 10, 1950 she married Richard G. Keller who preceded her in death on December 11, 1981.  Margaret then married Robert...

Apr 4, 2019

Rita Claire (Clark) Weber, age 94 of Defiance, died on Thursday, April 4, 2019 after a short illness at CHP Defiance Area Inpatient Hospice Center. She was surrounded by family and friends during her passing. Rita was born on July 13, 1924 in Paulding, Ohio, and was a graduate of Paulding High School. She was a clerk at J.C....

Apr 1, 2019

Marion R. Mekus Marion R. Mekus, 90, of Defiance, passed away Monday evening, April 1st, 2019 at the Kingsbury Place in Defiance. She was born in Paulding County on February 27, 1929, she was the daughter of the late Bernard and Lucille (Reed) Gutman. On June 19, 1947 she married married Albert Mekus, who died September 18, 2016. They were...

Apr 1, 2019

John K. Johnston, age 69 of Jewell, passed away on Monday, April 1, 2019 at Mercy Defiance Hospital. He was born on August 4, 1949 to the late Charles and Marilyn (Young) Johnston in Reading, Pennsylvania. On January 4, 1969  he married Jacqueline (Disheaux) Johnston, who resides in Jewell, Ohio.

John worked at General Motors in Defiance...

Mar 31, 2019

Gerald Friesner Gerald "Fly" Friesner, 73, of Oakwood, OH , passed away Sunday, March 31st, 2019 at St. Vincent Medical Center, Toledo after a brief illness. He was born in Middlepoint, OH on July 21, 1945, to the late Dwight Friesner and Datha (Fox) Stanz. He was a 1964 graduate of Elida High School, an Army veteran and a member...

Mar 31, 2019

June I. Burke, 96, of Defiance, passed away on Sunday morning, March 31, 2019 at Twin Rivers Care Center in Defiance. She was born on August 12, 1922 to George and Lilly (Bayshore) Lamb in Paulding, Ohio. On January 8, 1949 she married Howard F. Burke, who preceded her in death on March 1, 2017. June was a faithful...

Mar 31, 2019

Diane S. Thornell, 68, of Defiance, peacefully passed away on Sunday evening,  March 31, 2019 at CHP Defiance Area Inpatient Hospice Center. She was born on April 28, 1950 to Maurice and Clara (Darris) Louagie in Van Wert County, Ohio. Diane was a 1968 graduate of Crestview High School. On October 4, 1969 she married Robert Thornell, who resides...

Mar 28, 2019

Mark G. Shomsky, 60, of Defiance, passed away on Thursday morning March 28, 2019 at CHP Defiance Area Inpatient Hospice Center, surrounded by his family and with his wife by his side. He was born on March 16, 1959 to Albert and Jean (Chanavier) Shomsky in Detroit, Michigan. On September 29, 2009 he married Nicole (Sholl) Shomsky, who resides...

Mar 28, 2019

Susan P. (Meister) Bockelman, of Defiance, passed away on Thursday, March 28, 2019 surrounded by her family. Born on September 12, 1932 to the late Clyde and Ethel  Meister in Whitehouse, Ohio. She married William C. Bockelman on March 10, 1951. Susie was a loving wife, mother, and grandmother who loved spending time with her family during the holidays,...

Mar 25, 2019

Calvin D. Weber, 68, of Holgate, died March 25, 2019 at the Elkhart, Indiana General Hospital.  He was born in Hicksville, Ohio on November 16, 1950 the son of John Franklin & Zelma (Werst) Weber.  He married June Trowbridge and she preceded him in death in 2008.

Calvin is survived by two daughters, Mary Weber of Texas,...

Mar 22, 2019

Ned A. Speiser Of Sherwood passed away peacefully, surrounded by his loving family, at Parkview Regional Medical Center on Friday, March 22, 2019, following a 16 month fight against lymphoma.  Born on December 4, 1943, to Murl and Beryl (McFeeters) Speiser, he grew up on the family farm in Delaware Township. He proudly lived in Defiance County his entire...

Mar 22, 2019

Ray Kelly Meade, 66, of Defiance, passed away on  Friday, March 22, 2019 at Toledo Hospital. Ray was born on August 28, 1952 to Kelly and Marie (Marcum) Meade in Wise County , VA.  He was a 1972 graduate of Ayersville High School.  Ray served his country in the Army from 1972-1978. On October 28, 2007 he married Darlene...

Mar 19, 2019

Garnet M. McCoy Garnet M. McCoy, 87, of Defiance, passed away Tuesday, March 19th, 2019 at her son's home. She was born in Garret, IN on September 3, 1931, she was the daughter of the late Harry and Edna (Zuber) Worden. She was a Hicksville High School graduate and lived in Defiance since 1950. She retired from the Campbell Soup...

Mar 19, 2019

Donald William Krumel, 95, of Defiance, died peacefully at 8:05 p.m., Tuesday, March 19, 2019, at Ebeid Hospice Residence, Sylvania, surrounded by his family. He resided at Rosary Care Center in Sylvania, Ohio since 2013. Prior to 2013, Don was long-time resident of Defiance. Donald was born on March 16, 1924, in Defiance County to Joseph and Margaret Krumel. He...