Don Wellman, Coldwater, Ohio, age 91, passed away peacefully, surrounded by his loving family on Tuesday, April 23, 2019 at Mercer Health in Coldwater, Ohio.

He was born on January 22, 1928 to the late Raymond H and Regina M. (Froning) in Coldwater, Ohio. He married Bernice F. (Siefring) in Philothea, Ohio on June 25, 1949.

She survives, along with their five children; Tom (Sandy) Wellman, Maria Stein, Sandy (Don) Keller, Fort Recovery, Cindy Schwieterman (Coldwater), Tim (Pam) Wellman (Coldwater), and Terry (Deb) Wellman, Fort Recovery, along with their seventeen grandchildren and twenty-three great grandchildren. He is survived by his sister-in-law Jeanette Wellman and family and in-laws Luetta Forsthoefel, Herb Siefring, Roger (Rose Ann) Siefring, Mary Siefring, Mildred Siefring, Dorothy Siefring, Eileen Siefring and numerous nieces and nephews.

Deceased are his brother Elmer Wellman, parents-in-law, Bernard J. and Pauline Siefring, Bart Siefring, Omer (Monica) Siefring, Orville (Jeanette) Siefring, Bernard Siefring, Elmer Siefring, Gerald Siefring, Charles Siefring, David Siefring, Stella Siefring and Don Forsthoefel.

Don attended Brunnerdale Seminary in Canton, Ohio for four years and was a 1945 graduate of Coldwater High School. He served in WWII with the US Army Corps of Engineers, serving in Guam, Hawaii and Japan. He earned certification in Machine & Tooling Engineering from International Correspondence School in Scranton, PA while working at several tool and die companies in the area, including Portland Forge and AVCO New Idea. He was a member of the Society of Manufacturing Engineers.

In 1955 he co-founded Coldwater Machine Company and operated it for over twenty years before selling the business. In 1977 he joined Wright State University-Lake Campus in Celina, Ohio as Adjunct Professor and began the Machine and Tool Technology program and taught for ten years until his retirement in 1988.

Don was very active in his parish at Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Coldwater where he volunteered as CCD Instructor, Lay Communion Distributor, Lector, Adult Funeral Mass Server, and served as Parish Council President. He was a member of the Third Order of Saint Francis and also a member of the Knights of Columbus, serving as bereavement officer. He also volunteered his services in various woodworking projects for the parish, making wooden hangers for the parish priests' vestments and designing and building the wooden arches decorating the upper balcony seating in the church.

Don served on the Board of Directors of the American Budget Co., was involved in the design and building of the therapy equipment and was a volunteer aid for many years at the St. Peter Neurological Center. He was an active member of the Coldwater American Legion, serving on the Honorary Funeral Drill Team, as a trustee and as Legion Historian. He designed and assisted in the building of the new memorial in front of the American Legion. He also authored and published a book on the American Legion Veterans in the Mercer County area in 2008, entitled "History and Shared Memories." He was also a member of the Coldwater VFW.

Don was an avid reader and enjoyed studying family genealogy and bird watching, but his favorite hobby was woodworking and tinkering in his workshop with his tools and equipment on wood projects. He was known for the many nativity cribs he built for his family and for nieces and nephews as wedding gifts and also for the replica light house he built and later donated to the St. Charles Seminary.

He loved to tinker and tell jokes and he will be deeply missed by his loving family and many friends.

Mass of Christian burial will be held at 10:30 AM on Saturday April 27 at Holy Trinity Catholic Church, Coldwater. Burial with military rites will follow in St. Elizabeth cemetery.

Friends may call on Friday from 2-8 PM and on Saturday from 9-10 AM at the Hogenkamp Funeral Home, Coldwater.

Contributions may be made to the Eternal Word TV Network.

Condolences may be left at hogenkampfh.com.