Dorothy Helen (Schertz) Hostetler Obituary
Dorothy Helen (Schertz) Hostetler
May 18, 1929 – December 24, 2023
Dorothy Hostetler passed from this life on Christmas Eve morning She will be fondly remembered and sadly missed.
Dorothy ("Dot" to friends and family) grew up on a family farm in Metamora, Illinois, the youngest of six children. She often spoke with fond memories of farm life in a loving and laughing family. A painter by hobby, one of Dorothy’s works included a family farm scene that hung in her Dublin, Ohio apartment until her death. Her family was part of the Mennonite church community in Metamora.
Attending Bluffton College (Bluffton, Ohio), Dorothy majored in elementary education, and was voted May Queen during her senior year. It is there where she met Richard W. Hostetler, and after graduating from college, the two married on December 28, 1951 in Metamora. They lived in Indianola, Iowa for several years before moving to Tiffin, Ohio in 1964, where her husband was a professor at Heidelberg College. The two raised five children. Eventually, Dorothy became an elementary teacher, primarily in the Tiffin School system at Noble Elementary School. In 1968, the family built a remote lakeside cabin in Ontario, Canada, a favorite summer getaway. The Hostetlers were long-time members of St. Paul's United Methodist Church in Tiffin. Near the end of her husband’s academic career, the two lived two years in Sendai, Japan, teaching English at Miyagi Gakuin Women’s University.
After Richard passed away in February 1998, Dorothy remained in Tiffin for several years until she moved to Dublin, Ohio, living next door to her youngest child (Alan) and his family. She would later move to Friendship Village of Dublin, where she remained until the end of her life.
Dorothy enjoyed many things passionately, especially natural beauty, gardening, music, reading, tennis (playing and watching), and visiting her children and grandchildren. She was full of ideas, wit, and innovation, and was a gifted administrator. For example, she helped establish the Tiffin-Seneca County Child Care Center in 1972, a United Way-supported 5-star rated center. She also helped start a Tiffin soup kitchen involving a collaboration of church congregations.
In addition to her husband, Dorothy was preceded in death by her father and mother, Arthur Schertz and Esther (Strubhar) Schertz, and all her siblings, Arthur (Jr.), Kay, Ruth, Harriet, and Harold.
All her five children, ten grandchildren, and one great-grandchild survive her:
● Pamela Hostetler (Silver Spring, MD; m. Tony Adams)
● Jane Hostetler Wright (Tulsa, OK; m. Steven Wright, children Samuel and Winston)
● Barbara Hostetler (Verona, WI; children Katie (m. Alex Kay; daughter Lucille) and Grant);
● David Hostetler (Clarksville, VA; children Daniel (m. Kiki Kazickas), Alex, Thomas (m. Ellie Fitzgerald), and Lauren), and
● Alan Hostetler (Dublin, OH; m. Cindi (Shaffer) Hostetler, children Bryce and Nash).
A memorial service of worship will be held on Saturday, May 4, 2024, at 11 a.m. in the Muirfield Room at Friendship Village of Dublin, located at 6000 Riverside Dr, Dublin, OH 43017.
A luncheon for friends and family will immediately follow the memorial service. Those wishing to attend the luncheon are asked to contact Cindi Hostetler by April 21, 2024, at [email protected], with the names of all attending.
No flowers or donations are necessary. Those still wishing to send flowers for the Memorial Service may send them to Friendship Village of Dublin, Attn. Dorothy Hostetler Memorial Service (at the above address). Those wishing to donate in Dorothy's memory may contribute either to The Mennonite Disaster Services (https://mds.org) or to Doctors Without Borders (https://donate.doctorswithoutborders.org).
