Judith L Koepke, 84, passed away Wednesday, March 20, at St. Rita’s Medical Center, Lima, Ohio.

She was born July 20, 1939 in Lima, Ohio to Frederick W. and Mary Helen (Blakeley) Tschantz.

On August 10, 1963, she married Paul F. Koepke in Bluffton, Ohio.  He died February 11, 2021.

Mrs. Koepke is survived by a sister, Jerri Osborn of Napoleon, Ohio; nieces and nephews, Elizabeth Osborn, Napoleon, Ohio, Stephanie (Tony) Taubert, San Rafael, California and Russell (Dawn) Osborn, Atlanta, Georgia; great-nephews, Jon (Skylar) Lampson, Grayson Osborn and Noah (Kate) Bierschank; great-niece, Sydney Taubert and a great-great-niece, Lyric Lampson.

Along with her parents and husband, she was preceded in death by a sister and brother-in-law, Jackie and Brent Schultz, and a brother-in-law, Jon Osborn.

She earned a bachelor’s degree from Lakeland College, Sheboygan, Wisconsin and a master’s degree in library science from IU Bloomington.

Judith and Paul moved to Goshen in 1969 from Plymouth to serve the Plymouth United Church of Christ. She was a member of the American Library Association and the Indiana Library Federation and served on the Media Council of the Northern Indiana Education Services Center. She was a member of the Committee on Ministry of the Northwest Association of the Indiana-Kentucky Conference of the United Church of Christ.

Music was an important part of Judith’s life and she was a member of the Goshen Community Chorale.

Mrs. Koepke retired in 1999 as Director of Media Services for Goshen Community Schools. She also taught English at Robbinsdale Junior High, Robbinsdale, Minnesota, Columbus High School, Columbus, Wisconsin, Plymouth High School, Plymouth, Indiana and at Towncrest Junior High School, Goshen.

Visitation will be Friday, April 4 from 12 p.m. until the 1 p.m. memorial service at Yoder-Culp Funeral Home, 1911 South Main St., Goshen, IN.

Burial will be at Violett Cemetery.

Memorial contributions may be given to Plymouth United Church of Christ, Goshen, Mercy Health Hospice, Lima, Ohio or Habitat for Humanity of Elkhart County.