Good friends will always be remembered.
Featured Remembrance:
John Ruskin Howe, Jr.’57, died November 5, 2022. John was born in Dayton, Ohio to the late Elizabeth Brewbaker Howe ’24 and John Ruskin Howe, Sr. ’21 the 13th president of Otterbein University 1939 to 1945. John graduated from Otterbein University where he met his wife Judith Jenkins Howe ’58. While attending Otterbein, John played tennis, was in the “O’ Club, student government/senate, and Pi Kappa Phi (Country Club) fraternity. John went on to get is masters and doctoral from Yale University. He also received an honorary degree of LHD-Doctor of Humane Letters from Otterbein in 1974. Read more about Howe’s impact here.
Alumni Obituaries
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Constance Bailey Brandenburg
Constance Bailey Brandenburg ’51 died July 3, 2015. She was an employee of the Franklin (OH) City Schools for 21 years, retiring in 1991. She was a Jennings Scholar in the 1983-84 school year and named Teacher of the Year in 1986. She was preceded in death by her husband of 59 years, Charles. She is survived by four children, including Marilyn Brandenburg Winn ’73; four grandchildren and one great-grandson.
Frank MarLett
Frank MarLett ’50 died Aug. 26, 2015. He was a United Methodist pastor for 43 years, serving churches in Columbus, Cleveland, Mentor, Akron, Galion and Wooster. He was district superintendent in Mount Vernon, retiring in 1992; then served part-time at West Lebanon UMC for four years. He is survived by his wife of 64 years, Joan Waugh MarLett; three children; nine grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren.
James Nash
James Nash ’49 died March 7, 2014. He was preceded in death by his wife, Marie Holt Nash ’46, and one son. He is survived by six children and cousin, Richard Winkler ’55.
Donald Cooper
Donald Cooper ’49 died March 22, 2015. He was employed by Titanium Metal Corporation for more than 50 years, retiring as technical director. He was preceded in death by his father-in-law, Theodore Nichols ’27. He is survived by his wife of 65 years, Berneta Nichols Cooper ’49; two children; three grandchildren; seven great-grandchildren and brother-in-law, Theodore Nichols II ’62.
Frances Queen Touby
Frances Queen Touby ’48 died May 22, 2015. She volunteered for many groups including 20 years in the Girl Scouts, docent at the Bishop Museum in Honolulu and at the Institute of Texan Cultures in San Antonio during her life as an Air Force wife. In 1985, she became a reading specialist at Winston School and volunteered with a remedial reading program in San Antonio. She was preceded in death by her husband, Robert Touby ’51. She is survived by two…
Mary Morris Hearley
Mary Morris Hearley ’48 died July 8, 2015. She was a professor at Rochester (MN) Community College where she taught speech and lip reading. She was prominent in the Cleveland Council of World Affairs and served on Gov. John Gilligan’s Patient Care Committee. Her research appeared in the Journal of Curriculum Studies and commentary in USA Today. She was preceded in death by husbands, Ray Gifford ’44 and Thomas Hearley. She is survived by three daughters and two grandchildren.
Mildred Thorpe Ice
Mildred Thorpe Ice ’49 died May 13, 2015. She taught home economics for two years, then joined the Ohio Power Co., educating consumers about new kitchen appliances in person and on television. She was preceded in death by her husband, Larry, and sister, Marian Thorpe Locke ’47. She is survived by four children, eight grandchildren and one great-grandchild.
Doyle Blauch
Doyle Blauch ’48 died Oct. 25, 2013. He was a veteran of the U.S. Army serving as a medic with the infantry in the European theatre. He was a retired professor of botany and biology, retiring from West Virginia Northern Community College, Wheeling, WV, in 1988. He was preceded in death by his brother, Claude Blauch ’50. He is survived by his wife of 70 years, Jennie Wheelbarger Blauch ’45; one daughter; one grandson; two siblings, including sister, Sue Blauch Denzer…
Ruth Ann Masters Clossman
Ruth Ann Masters Clossman ’46 died May 11, 2015. She was a former school teacher. She was preceded in death by her husband, Donald, and daughter, Carolyn. She is survived by four sons, 12 grandchildren and 15 great-grandchildren.
Dorothy Everly Hiatt
Dorothy Everly Hiatt ’46 died June 12, 2015. She was employed by Marana High School in Arizona from 1948 until 1983, first as a teacher, then as a counselor. She was preceded in death by her husband, Robert Hiatt ’47.
Jane Sturgis Kestner
Jane Sturgis Kestner ’45 died May 6, 2015. She worked at the National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, for 35 years. After retirement, she volunteered at the Family Research Library, Kensington, MD. She was preceded in death by her husband, Alvin, and one son. She is survived by three daughters, eight grandchildren and 29 great-grandchildren.
Wanda Boyles Gebhart
Wanda Boyles Gebhart ’47 died April 27, 2015. She translated Spanish for an export firm, then became certified in handwriting analysis by the International Graphoanalysis Society in 1973. She was preceded in death by her husband of 66 years, Clifford Gebhart ’47; parents, Elmer Boyles ’1916 and Neva Priest Boyles ’1921; and three sisters including, Marilyn Boyles Flanary ’47. She is survived by four children; five grandchildren; seven great-grandchildren; and sister, Carol Boyles Cramer ’54.
Florence Emert
Florence Emert '42 died August 28, 2015. During World War II, she was the only female chemist in the dynamite plant where she worked. She contracted polio and was unable to continue as a bench chemist, leading her to a career in several university science libraries, and ultimately, to Battelle Memorial Institute in Columbus. She is survived by generations of nieces and nephews.
Wanda Hamilton Tinnerman
Wanda Hamilton Tinnerman '40 died April 16, 2013. She volunteered for the American Red Cross and Hope Hospice in Ft. Myers, FL. She was preceded in death by her husband, Robert Tinnerman '38. She is survived by four children, including David Tinnerman '67, his wife, Catherine Brandeberry Tinnerman '66 and Barbara Tinnerman Zech '69; four grandsons; and five great-grandchildren.
Meriam Haffey Ernsberger
Meriam Haffey Ernsberger '45 died May 14, 2015. Preceded in death by her husband, Paul Ernsberger '44; father-in-law, Ronald Ernsberger '1917; borthers-in-law, Ralph Ernsberger '39 and Warren Ernsberger '43; and one grandson. She is survived by on son; two grandchildren; six great-grandchildren; and sister-in-law, Patricia Orndorff Ernsberger '43.