Wesley Thomas Runk formerly of Lima, died on Sept. 23, 2017. He was born in Mansfield, Ohio, on July 26, 1934, to Wesley J. Runk and Mary Lane (Benson) Runk. He was preceded in death by his parents, his sister, Carol, and his sister-in-law Bonnie.
He is survived by his wife, Mary Beth, and his brother, David. He is also survived by his son, David (Beth) Runk, his daughter Ellen, (Jeff) Shockey, and his son Tim (Megan) Runk, six grandsons, two granddaughters, three granddaughters-in-law and five great-grandsons.
Wes graduated from Hughes High School in Cincinnati in 1952, from Wittenberg College in 1956 and from Hamma Divinity School with an STM (Masters in Sacred Theology) in 1959.
He was the founding pastor of Holy Trinity Lutheran Church in Englewood, Ohio, and later accepted a call as senior pastor at St. Luke Lutheran Church, Lima.
Wes then began the process of creating a new ministry of aiding pastors by sharing the children's sermons he had been writing since his days in seminary. That ministry eventually became his life-long passion, CSS Publishing Co., which is now operated by his children.
Throughout his career, in addition to the ministry at CSS Publishing Co., Wes continued to serve the church as an interim pastor at many churches, including English Lutheran Church, Bluffton and throughout northwestern Ohio and Florida.
A memorial service will be held at Emmanuel Lutheran Church in Venice on Sept. 29, at 11 a.m. A luncheon will be served immediately after the service in the fellowship hall. Another memorial service will be held at St. Luke Lutheran Church, Lima, at a later date.
Memorial contributions may be made to Coffee Talk, Venice, a ministry for the homeless, by designating their gifts through Emmanuel Lutheran Church, Venice.
