(Honoring A Passion For Dancing & Nature)
Velmetta “Vel” A. Moody, 71, of Napoleon, passed away peacefully on Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2026, at ProMedica Toledo Hospital. She was born Jan. 14, 1955, in Delta, Ohio, to Bayard and Ethel Couts.
Vel was previously married to David Burkholder for 26 years, and they had three children together. She later married Darrell Moody, who preceded her in death on Sept. 28, 2008.
Vel loved animals and found joy in ceramic work and sewing. In her younger years, she enjoyed going with her family to Lake James—often swimming after church. She also liked to go to the Grange in Ottokee for square and polka dancing.
Left to cherish her memory are her loving children, Velissa (Mark) Seiler, James Burkholder, and Carrie (Matt) Sharp; grandchildren, Alesha and Preston Ruoff, Eliam and Quinton Seiler, Seth Burkholder, Mallory, Thomas and James Lines, and Maddie Sharp; great-granddaughter, Ariel Ruoff. She is also survived by her sister, Helen Wasneck, and numerous nieces and nephews.
She was preceded in death by her parents; husband, Darrell Moody; brothers, Bob, Joe, Dick, Ray, and Harold Couts; sister, Judy Couts; half-sister, Irene Hill; and half-brother, Carl Rump.
A visitation will be held Sunday, March 1, 2026, at Walker-Hoening Mortuary, 333 W. Main St., Napoleon, from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. Funeral services will follow on Monday, March 2, 2026, at the mortuary at 11 a.m., with an hour of visitation prior. Pastor James Strawn will officiate. Burial will follow at Raker Cemetery in Delta at 1 p.m.
Memorials in Vel’s memory may be considered to any humane society of the donor’s choice or the Swanton Butterfly House-Nature Preserve. Friends are invited to share a memory of Vel and sign the online guestbook at www.hoeningfuneralhome.com.