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NAPPANEE – Anita DeFrees, age 90, of Nappanee, passed away Tuesday morning, Aug. 29, 2023, at Goshen General Hospital after a short illness.
Anita was born on March 6, 1933, in Etna Green, to George and Lucille Spangle Ford. She was a 1951 Sidney High School graduate and on May 29, 1954, she married Harvey DeFrees Jr. in Eel River Church of the Brethren in Silver Lake. Anita was a member of the Nappanee United Methodist Church. She enjoyed reading and flowers, but most of all she cherished time with her family.
She is survived by her husband of 69 years, Harvey DeFrees Jr., of Nappanee; son, Philip (Rhonda) DeFrees, of Muncie; daughter, Elaine (Charles) Howell, of Bluff City, Tenn.; three grandchildren: Andrew (Ashley) DeFrees, of Italy; Sarah (Kerry Siegrist) Howell, of Nashville, Tenn.; and Michael (Cheri Tinney) Howell, of Elizabethton, Tenn.; stepgrandson, Kristopher Bilbrey, of Muncie; two great-grandchildren, Kane and Devyn DeFrees; and a sister, Linda Hathaway, Liberty Mills. She was preceded in death by her parents.
Visitation will be from 9:30 to 11 a.m. Friday, Sept. 1 at Thompson-Lengacher & Yoder Funeral Home, Nappanee, followed by a 11 a.m. funeral service also at the funeral home. Pastor Mary Hubbard, of Nappanee United Methodist Church, will officiate. Burial will follow in Union Center Cemetery.
Memorial contributions in Anita’s name can be given to Nappanee United Methodist Church.
