JoAnn (Loveland) Riegsecker, age 95, went home to be with her Savior and Lord on Saturday, August 2, 2025. For about the past year and four months, she was a resident at Fairlawn Retirement Home in Archbold, OH.
She was born on April 22, 1930, at Morenci, MI. She was the youngest of five children born to Arthur and Mabel (Todd) Loveland.
In her early childhood and teen years, her family lived in Ottokee and Tedrow, OH, respectively. She was a student in the Wauseon School District. She attended the Tedrow Methodist Church while living in Tedrow.
She was a devout Christian having received Jesus Christ as her personal Savior in her teenage years and rededicated her life along with her spouse soon after they were married.
On December 25, 1946, she married Freeman Louis Riegsecker at the home of his parents, Louis and Della (Stutzman) Riegsecker. They enjoyed 54 years of marriage together and lived in Northwest Ohio all their lives, except a few retirement years in Bonita Springs, FL. Freeman preceded her in death on January 16, 2001.
Music was an important part of her life. When she became an adolescent, her father bought her a guitar, which she learned to play while holding it on her lap.
She frequently played the guitar and sang at church programs and the Ottokee Grange Hall. Later, on occasion, her children listened to her play the piano by ear (without the aid of written music). Through the years, she enjoyed singing in the church choir and lady’s duets and trios.
Before marriage, she cared for the child of a Pettisville School teacher and his wife and worked at the Wauseon Canning Factory.
As a wife and mother, homemaking was her first priority, but she also was employed for a while at Gendron Wheel Company in Archbold.
She was an avid reader, a master at solving word puzzles, and very dedicated to daily journalling. She enjoyed needlepointing and embroidered numerous dresser scarves, etc. for family members.
Throughout her life, she contributed her time and talents to her church in many ways, including teaching Sunday School and helping the Ladies Missionary cause. She was a member of First Baptist Church in Stryker, OH for many years.
Preceding her in death were her parents, four siblings, Luella (Clare) Burch, Robert Loveland, Donald Loveland, and Doris (Eugene) Galbraith, her husband, and one granddaughter, Amber Riegsecker.
Surviving immediate family members include her daughter, Barbara (Duane) Short, four sons David (Karen), Steven (Linda), Kevin, and Timothy (Mara), nine grandchildren, 18 great grandchildren, and two great, great grandchildren.
Visitation hours are planned for 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. on Thursday, August 7, 2025, at the Fairlawn Chapel in Archbold, OH. A graveside service will be held at the Pettisville Cemetery in Pettisville, OH on Friday morning, August 8, 2025, at 9:30 a.m. for family and friends. An 11:00 a.m. celebration of life service will be held after the burial service at the First Baptist Church in Stryker. Attendees are invited to stay for lunch after the service.
In lieu of flowers, the family asks that memorial contributions be made to the First Baptist Church of Stryker, Gideons International for Bibles, or the Archbold Community Library.
Online condolences may be offered to the family at www.shortfuneralhome.com.