Duane E. Rasey

Duane E. Rasey, 78, of Mount Gilead, and formerly of Marion, passed away Thursday morning, May 31, 2018, at the Ross Heart Hospital in Columbus.

On Oct. 5, 1939, Duane was born at home in Marion, Ohio, son of the late Donald and Lydia (Caldwell) Rasey. He graduated from Marion Harding High School in the Class of 1957.

Following graduation, Duane enlisted in the U.S. Navy. He proudly served his country from June 1957 – September 1960 when he received his Honorable Discharge. He continued to serve in the Navy and Army Reserves.

On Dec. 14, 1962, Duane married Donna K. Purdy. They shared 30 years as husband and wife and raised five children together before she preceded him in death on July 8, 1993. Finding a second chance at love, Duane married Barbara J. Sites on Oct. 12, 1996 in Dublin, Ohio. They have shared the last 21 years together as husband and wife.

For many years, Duane worked as a boiler operator for Quaker Foods in Marion. When they closed down, he took a job with Ohio Wesleyan University.

Duane was a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in Galion. He was also a member of the Morrow Co. Genealogical Society, the Morrow Co. Tea Party, on the board at Candlewood Lake for nearly a decade, and the USS General Mann Ships Reunion Past President.

A sports nut, Duane was a big fan of the Columbus Blue Jackets and Cincinnati Reds. He also coached baseball for 40 years. He was known as a “Mr. Fix-It”. He was very handy and enjoyed woodworking. He had quite the sweet tooth, loving his ice cream and Wendy’s Frosty’s. Duane was a “computer geek of his generation,” and enjoyed working on genealogy. He was an excellent writer and penned many special poems.

Duane will always be remembered as a happy man who loved to tease people and was always full of great jokes.

Duane will be dearly missed by his wife, Barbara, of Mount Gilead; five children: Devota (Tom) Davis, of Marion, Jackie Rasey, of Columbus, Duane E. (Tammy) Rasey, of Rockhill, South Carolina, David Rasey, of Marion, Julie Rasey, of Columbus; four step-children: Deborah (Lawrence) Andres, of Madison, Ohio, Gretchen (Edward) Kontul, of Marengo, Alanson O. (Natalie) Taylor IV, of Lehi, Utah, Barbara Hercules, of Barnesville, Ohio; 21 grandchildren; 14 great grandchildren; a brother, Keith (Peggy)Rasey, of Marion; and a sister, Yolanda (Harley) Rosten, of Piketon, Ohio.

Duane’s family will greet friends from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. on Monday, June 4, 2018, at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, 250 South St., Galion, Ohio 44833. Funeral services to honor and celebrate Duane’s life will be held there at 12Noon with Bishop Steve Layton officiating. Burial with military honors will follow in St. Mary’s Cemetery, Marion, Ohio.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Columbus Blue Jackets Foundation, 200 W. Nationwide Blvd., Columbus, Ohio 43215 or to a local Veterans Affairs Medical Center.

Snyder Funeral Homes of Mount Gilead are honored to have been chosen to serve the Rasey family, and your special memories or condolences may be shared with them by visiting www.SnyderFuneralHomes.com.