Mennonite World Review - August 2020
Obituaries are emailed to MennObits before MWR is printed. Wording may vary in printed version.
Buller, Anne W. Wiebe ; . .
Chupp, Sam ; . .
Mennonite World Review - August 10, 2020 - 96th Year, No. 16 - p. 15
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Chupp, Sam
Sam Chupp, 84, of Sun City West, Ariz., died after a weeks-long battle with COVID-19 on July 9, 2020. He was born to Amish parents, Levi and Malinda (Wingard) Chupp, in Thomas, Okla.
He grew up in the Mennonite church, mostly in Nappanee, Ind. In 1958 he married Pat Schrock. In 1962, they settled in Phoenix.
He was an active member and respected lay leader of Sunnyslope Mennonite Church in Phoenix his entire adult life. In the years after retiring from his lifelong career as a body shop manager at Rudolph/Lou Grubb Chevrolet, Brown & Brown Chevrolet and Don Sanderson Ford, he became the custodian at Sunnyslope. He tended the grounds, cleaned the facilities and handled repairs with the same fine-tuned artistry he used to fix auto bodies. His wife, Pat, died of cancer in 1992.
In 1993 he married Donna Steckly, who had lost her first husband to cancer as well. Together they enjoyed golfing and regular game nights with church friends. They recently moved from Peoria to Sun City West in order to live near good friends and relish the golf course right outside their back door.
In his youth, he entered 1-W alternative service to military service, volunteering for two years at a state mental health facility in Westville, Ind. In his retirement years, he resurrected his farm boy roots to raise delicious food in his backyard garden. His garden beds, fertilized with meticulous attention and pride, produced tasty tomatoes even in the desert heat.
Survivors include his wife, Donna, of Sun City West; four children, Kryss of Chicago, Ron (Lois Meyer) of Goshen, Ind., Kim of Glendale and Randy (Beth Montgomery) of Phoenix; six siblings, LeRoy of Portland, Ore., Mary Lou Martin of Greencastle, Pa., Linda Hostetler of Middlebury, Ind., Mel of Hagerstown, Md., Dorothy Hoover of Nappanee, Ind., and Carol Keener of State Line, Pa.; five grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.
He was preceded in death by a sister, Viola Bender, in 2004; a brother, Harvey, in 2015; a granddaughter, Korissa, in 2015; and a brother-in-law, Arlin Martin, in 2017.
Celebration of life services are pending due to pandemic restrictions. A donation to Sunnyslope Mennonite Church is welcomed.
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Buller, Anne W. Wiebe
Anne W. Buller, 95, of Bluffton, Ohio, died July 5, 2020. She was born June 14, 1925, to Henry and Anna (Schultz) Wiebe in Saskatoon, Sask.
When she was 14 her family moved to Mountain Lake, Minn., where she met Harold W. Buller at church. She graduated from Tabor College in Hillsboro, Kan., majoring in English. She and Harold married on Aug. 22, 1947. Their bond was of deepest love, intimate friendship and mutual honoring.
In 1948, they entered post-World War II relief work for three years in Europe under Mennonite Central Committee. They flew into Berlin, Germany, during the blockade and established Nachbarschaftshaus, a neighborhood community center. At age 90, she was an honored guest at the Nachbarschaftshaus 60th anniversary.
She supported Harold in pastor roles at Bethel College Mennonite Church in North Newton, Kan., and First Mennonite Church, Beatrice, Neb. He then became chaplain at Beatrice Community Hospital. In 1965 she began work there as a “friend around the place,” then as director of volunteer services and finally as assistant chaplain. She was an accomplished pianist and vocalist. She directed choirs, sang in music groups and recorded an album of gospel hymns.
After Harold died on Jan. 4, 2006, she moved to Bluffton and experienced a wonderful chapter living close to family and as a member of First Mennonite Church. She enjoyed reading and handwork. Her greatest joy was relating to children, grandchildren, extended family and friends around the world. Her deep faith and trust in God was the core of her life.
Survivors include two sons, Paul (Deb) Buller of Goshen, Ind., and Glenn (Judy) Buller of Bluffton; a daughter, Mary Anne (Dan Falle) Triller of Scottsdale, AZ; a sister, Jean Janzen; two brothers, Allan Wiebe and Loren (Leneta) Wiebe; four grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.
She was preceded in death by her husband, Harold; four brothers, Orlando Wiebe, Arno Wiebe, Henry Wiebe and Stanley Wiebe; and a sister, Erna Jantz.
A virtual memorial service will be held. Donations may be made to First Mennonite Church, Bluffton; The Et Cetera Shop, Bluffton; and Beatrice Community Hospital Foundation.
There were no obituaries in the August 24, 2020 issue of Mennonite World Review.