Richard "Dick" G. Tolles

Richard Glenn "Dick" Tolles, age 87 of Defiance, passed away peacefully on Thursday, January 29, 2026 at CHP Defiance Area Inpatient Hospice Center.   
  
Dick was born on August 18, 1938 in Weston, Ohio to Clara (Marsh) and Jay Tolles. He graduated from Grand Rapids High School in 1956. On May 2, 1959, he married the love of his life Janice Morlock who survives. They have been happily married for 66 years and together had four children; Debra Tolles of Defiance, Michael (Brenda) Tolles of Defiance, and Susan (Marc) Kissling of Wauseon. His daughter Beth Ann Villagomez passed away in September, 2024. He also leaves behind six grandchildren; Jason Guilford, Janelle Guilford, Jenny Bohn, Jessica Hamilton, Breanna Lutz, and Melissa Walls, and 13 great-grandchildren. 

Dick worked as an electrician at General Motors in Defiance, Ohio until his retirement in 2006 after 44 years of service. He coached baseball starting in 1967 in Weston, OH and then in Defiance for the Defiance Baseball Association, coaching Boys League and then Little League until 1992. He also was the Treasurer for the DBA for many of those years. He absolutely loved coaching and all of the boys he coached along the way. If he was not coaching, he was always at the ball parks watching other teams and sharing good times with other coaches. He was also active in the Defiance Athletic Boosters for many years. Dick donated alot of his time doing electrical work for the Defiance High School ball parks, as well as the city ball parks throughout the years.

Dick had a very special place in his heart for kids, rather it be his own family or a complete stranger, he cared for them all just the same. He was also a strong family man, he was consistently present, prioritizing family over personal gains, and made time for his wife and children and sacrificed so much to make sure his children had a better life.

He is also survived by his siblings, Lucille Barton and Dutch Tolles and several nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents, daughter Beth Ann Villagomez, great-granddaughter Laticia Nicole, his sisters, Ruth Duval, Lorabel Apger, Donna Thielman, Dorothy Law, Beulah Sautter and Betty Gordon, and his brothers, Alvin Tolles, Paul Tolles, Jim Tolles and Lee Tolles.
  
Visitation will be held from 10:00 am to 11:00 am on Saturday, February 7, 2026 at St. John's Catholic Church in Defiance. A Memorial Mass will follow at 11:00 am at the church, with Fr. Kevin McGraw officiating. Inurnment will take place in Riverside Cemetery.
  
In lieu of flowers, memorials can be directed to St. John Catholic Church, or CHP Defiance Area Hospice Center. 

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