Obituaries

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M. Eilene Mericle, 93, died May 4, 2017, at 7:47 p.m. at Willow Ridge - Betty House in Bluffton.  Eilene was born April 4, 1924, in Orange Township near Bluffton to the late Ross and Arah (Ewing) Tripplehorn.  On Sept. 17, 1942 she married Gerald "Gene" Mericle who preceded her in death on Oct. 22, 1997.

Eilene was a homemaker and had also worked at Gillette Bakery and Crow's Dime Store both of Bluffton.  She was a member of First United Methodist Church in Bluffton and the Bluffton Senior Citizens. 

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Owen Darrel Yoder, 94, died on May 3, 2017 at Mennonite Memorial Home, Bluffton. Darrel was the eldest child born on March 5, 1923, in Nappanee, Indiana, to the late Owen J. and Verda (Yoder) Yoder.

Darrel graduated from Topeka High School, in Topeka, Indiana. He attended Bluffton College and after serving in the armed forces graduated from Purdue University with a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering. 

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Thelma Pearl Bucher, 87, of Findlay and formerly of Road 4 in Pandora, died May 1, 2017, at Fox Run Manor, Findlay. Thelma was born Nov. 25, 1929, in Pandora, Ohio, to the late Err and Bertha (Nemire) Bridenbaugh.  On June 21, 1947, she married John Bucher who preceded her in death on March 28, 2011.

Thelma graduated from Pandora High School and then worked as a bookkeeper at Pandora Milling Company and later as a bookkeeper at Kersh Insurance in Ottawa, Ohio.  She also was a farmwife and helped on the family farm. 

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Mary Alice Dodge, 85, died April 28, 2017, at Bridge Hospice in Findlay.

Mary was born July 16, 1931, in Ada, Ohio, to Allen and Esther (Sites) High who preceded her in death. On Nov. 4, 1951, she married Rolland J. Dodge who survives.

Survivors include a daughter, Luann (Mark) Frisch of Carey, Ohio; a son, Dana Dodge of Bluffton; four grandchildren, Andrew Redick, Benjamin Redick, Travis Frisch, Joshua Dodge and six great-grandchildren.

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Phyllis Peggy Downey, 94, died April 23, 2017, at Mennonite Memorial Home in Bluffton. She was born on April 24, 1922, in Wapakoneta, Ohio, the eldest daughter of Bernard and Alvina (Zwiebel) Winget. In 1945, she married Royal Downey, who died in 1979.

Phyllis was raised in Orange Township and graduated from Cory-Rawson High School. She worked at Triplett Corp. during the Depression and World War II, and was later a retired farm wife.

Phyllis was a member of the English Lutheran Church in Bluffton.

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Lena May Badertscher, 85, died April 26, 2017 at 7:15 a.m. at Bluffton Hospital.  Lena was born Jan. 15, 1932, in Medina, Ohio, to the late George and Mary (Kendall) Preto. On June 27, 1959, she married Robert Badertscher and he survives.

Lena was a graduate of Bluffton High School and worked at Triplett Corporation, Bluffton from 1950-1990. She was a member of St. Mary's Catholic Church in Bluffton where she had taught catechism. She was a member of the Herb Club.

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