John R. Gardner, age 82, of 192 St. Francis Avenue, Tiffin, Ohio and formerly of SR 100, died at 10:00 am, Wednesday, December 6, 2006 in Mercy Hospital, Tiffin. He was born on November 1, 1924, in Tiffin, to the late Clarence E. and Winifred (Logsdon) Gardner. On October 14, 1950 in St. Joseph Catholic Church, Tiffin, he married Arlene R. Buton and she survives.
Other survivors include a son, Stephen Gardner and friend Patty of Tiffin; two daughters, Betty Ann (Robert) Stover of Tiffin; Susan Marie (Christopher) Brown of Colorado Springs, Colorado; four grandchildren, Erica DelCoro, Heather Hoover, Kimberly Boucher, and Rebecca Ward; five great grandchildren, Alexandra, Jose’, Brock, Kollin, and Damon.
He is preceded in death by an infant sister, a brother, Louis Gardner and two sisters, Mary Frances Gardner and Helen Detwiler.
Mr. Gardner was a 1942 graduate of Calvert High School and served in the United States Marine Corps during WWII. He was the owner and operator of Gardner-Sons Heating and Air Conditioning, Tiffin. He was a member of St. Joseph Catholic Church, a Past Exalted Ruler and Past District Deputy Grand Exalted Ruler for the Benevolent Protective Order of the Elks, a member of the Knights of Columbus, American Legion, the Eagles, and the Clinton Twp. Volunteer Fire Department.
The Funeral Mass will be 11 am Saturday, December 9, 2006, in St. Joseph Catholic Church, with Revs. James Say and Richard Dunn officiating. Burial will follow in St. Joseph Cemetery. Friends may call from 10 am until 10:45 am on Saturday, at Traunero Funeral Home, 214 S. Monroe St., Tiffin, Ohio 44883 (419)447-3113. The Rosary will be recited in church fifteen minutes prior to Mass.
Memorial Contributions may be made to the St. Francis Home Chapel Fund, in care of Traunero Funeral Home.