Obituaries

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Fredrick J. Porzelius, 81, of Chenoa, Ill., died at 3:15 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 9, 2014, at his residence.                                                    

He was born on May 24, 1933, in Secor, Ill., a son of Walter and Catherine Boeringa Porzelius. He married Marilyn Frobish on July 24, 1954, at the Salem Mennonite Church in rural Gridley. She survives.

Bluffton residents, who are survivors are his daughter, Janet (Tim) Schumacher and their children, Hannah, Isaac, Lily, Joseph  and Levi.

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Linda Sue Goecke, 64, died Dec. 8, 2014, at 3:25 p.m., Lima Memorial Health System. 

She was born March 29, 1950, in Bluffton to the late Clarence and Norma (Bushong) Burkholder. On June 5, 1976 she married Dale Goecke who survives.

She attended Bluffton High School. She was a secretary at McBrowns/DNC Hydraulics, Rawson.  

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Hiram M. "Junior", Kohli Jr., 88, of Greenville, Ohio, died Friday, Nov. 28, 2014, at Heartland of Greenville, Ohio.

He was born Oct. 11, 1926 in Pandora, Ohio, a son of the late Hiram M. and Sarah Jane (Wenger) Kohli.

Hehad previous owned Ohio Northern Egg Company in Huntington, W.V., and had served in the Army. He gave the opening Swiss invocation's for Swiss Days in Berne, Ind., and Swiss invocations Scripture reading yearly for Swiss Days and Bluffton College.

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Jeffrey P. Newland, 63, died on Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2014, at 9:30 a.m. at Lost Creek Care Center, Lima.

He was born on Nov. 22, 1951, in Bluffton, Ohio to Torence Robert and Dorothea (Neu) Newland and they preceded him in death.

He formerly worked at Ohio Northern University in the Janitorial Department.

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James "Jim" L. Lewis, 72, of Ada died at 9:35 p.m.  Dec. 1, 2014, at St. Rita's Medical Center, Lima, surrounded by his family.  He was born Aug. 25, 1942, in Beaverdam to the late Charles and LaVaun Reeder Lewis. On July 27, 1963, he married Betty Gaiffe and she survives.

He retired after 30 years from Ohio Northern University where he worked as a purchasing agent. He was a graduate of Beaverdam High School and a veteran of the Navy during the Cuban missile crisis.

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Ronald Lee Rich, 87, of Bluffton, Ohio, died on Nov. 28,2014, from complications from 
prostate cancer. He was born on March 29, 1927, in Washington, Ill., to Rufus J. and Lillian (Lantz) Rich.

He is survived by his wife, Elaine, of Bluffton; son Jonathan (Tai) of Union City, Calif.; son Andrew (Sally) of North Manchester, Ind.; daughter Miriam (James Brown) of Blacksburg, Va.; son Mark (Kathy) of Yellow Springs, Ohio; six grandchildren; sister Lois Smucker (Len) of Ashland, Ore.; and sister Mary Blosser of Bluffton.

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