Obituaries

She was a native of Pandora

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Janice Marie Block of Thompson, Iowa, died Tuesday, Oct. 9, 2018.  Janice was born on a farm in Pandora, Ohio, on Feb. 20, 1927 to the parents of Daniel Lee Welty and Faery Manilla Welty (Balmer).

She graduated from Pandora High School as valedictorian of her class.  She completed a bachelor’s degree in biology at Bluffton College where she was also  May Queen.

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James R. Coats, 68, died October 12, 2018, at Bridge Hospice Care Center in Findlay.  Jim was born Aug. 14, 1950, in Lodi, Ohio to Glenn and Shirley (Correll) Coats.  On April 6, 1974 he married Debra Coats who survives.

Jim graduated from Liberty Benton High School.  He worked as a painter and also worked at Hercules Tire in Findlay.  Jim was a member of Pandora Missionary Church. 

BHS graduate, retired from Triplett, Friends of the Library member

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Margaret Elaine Carr, 92, died Oct. 12, 2018, at her residence. Margaret was born Sept. 16, 1926, in Bluffton to the late R. Esmond and Alma Mary (Kohler) Griffith.  On May 25, 1946, she married Darrell Carr who preceded her in death on Nov. 23, 1981.

Margaret graduated from Bluffton High School and had worked at Triplett Corporation, Bluffton. She was a member of St. John's United Church of Christ in Bluffton where she had been a Sunday School teacher. Margaret had volunteered over 11,000 hours at Bluffton Hospital. She was a Friends of the Library volunteer.

Bluffton HS and Bluffton College graduate

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Ada May Cortner, 86, formerly of Bluffton, died Friday, Oct. 5, 2018, in her home in Indian Harbour Beach, Florida.

She was born May 29, 1932, in Bluffton, to Edna Steiner Oyer and Albert Oyer, who preceded her in death, along with two sisters, Magdalene M. Suter and Lois S. Glendening.

She was married to Carl W. Cortner, who also preceded her in death. She is survived by several cousins in the Bluffton area and by one daughter, Carla McGowan of Garland, Texas.

Ada May graduated from Bluffton High School in 1950 and from Bluffton College in 1954.

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Funeral Services for Avinell Manns will be held at 11 a.m. Thursday, Oct. 11, 2018, at the Price - McElroy Funeral Home, Kenton. Burial will follow in McDonald Fairview Cemetery. Friends may call from 4 to 8 p.m., Wednesday, Oct. 10, at the funeral home. 

She died Oct. 5, 2018, at the Cleveland Clinic. She was born on June 11, 1939, in Prestonsburg, Ky., to the late Earl and Vernal (Click) Crisp. On May 9, 1957, she married Virgil Manns and he preceded her in death on Oct. 22, 2009. 

Bluffton College graduate from Berne, Indiana

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Philip David Sprunger, 75, died Oct. 4, 2018, at his residence in Bluffton. Philip was born Oct. 10, 1942 in Berne, Indiana, to the late Donald and Mary Jane (Nussbaum) Sprunger. On July 23, 1966, he married Janice Smith Sprunger who survives in Bluffton.

Philip graduated from Berne French High School, obtained his bachelor's degree from Bluffton College and his master's degree from St. Francis College.  He had been an educator and guidance counselor at Leipsic and Patrick Henry Schools. 

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