Joanne H. Giessler

GIESSLER, JoAnne, age 89, of Oakwood passed away Thursday, December 31, 2020. JoAnne was born in Dayton, Ohio in 1931 to Arnold E. Herzel and Margaret (Bayman) Herzel. She was a 1949 graduate of Fairview High School and received her BS from Wittenberg University, Springfield, Ohio in 1953, and her MS in Education from Kent State in 1958. She was a member of Alpha Delta Pi Sorority at Wittenberg where she met the love of her life, Joe Giessler. She was an active member of St John’s Lutheran Church, Vandalia, OH, Our Savior Lutheran Church, Oakwood, OH and Hope Lutheran Church, The Villages, FL and was one of the first women delegates to a national Assembly of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America. She also served on the Development Committee of the Lutheran School of Dayton.

JoAnne was a gifted teacher, starting her career at Solon High School, where she taught English and Spanish and directed the annual musical. After serving as a substitute teacher in the Dayton area for many years, she taught English at Northmont Junior High School from 1976 to 1995. The Dayton Alliance for Education recognized her with its Excellence in Teaching Award in 1994. Active in many professional organizations, she was a frequent presenter at National Council of Teachers of Education (NCTE) and Ohio Council of International Reading Association conferences and was on the Board of Directors for the NCTE Junior High/Middle School Assembly and Secretary from1988 - 1991. She was appointed by the NCTE to its Promising Young Writers Advisory Committee, which administered an annual competition to honor eighth graders in the U.S., Canada and U.S. schools abroad for excellence in writing. She was awarded grants in 1985 and 1988 from the Dayton Education Foundation and served as the Co-Director of the Regional Tournament of Power of the Pen from 1989 – 1993.

JoAnne was a founding member of Muse Machine, a nationally recognized arts education organization organized in 1982. A talented writer, she wrote periodic articles for the Englewood Argus. During her retirement in Florida, she taught English as a Second Language to Spanish speaking individuals. Her interests were many, including travel, her beloved dogs, the arts, sports (as an athlete in field hockey, volleyball, softball and roller skating and a fan of many) and her adored grandsons.

Preceded in death by her parents, sister, Rose Ella Lachat; niece, Victoria Spangenberger; and beloved husband of 51 years, F. Joseph Giessler. She is survived by her daughters, Jo Giessler and Jennifer Giessler; two grandsons, Max Joseph Hodak and Samuel Lewis Hodak, and several great nieces and nephews. Arrangements were handled by Routsong Funeral Home, Kettering. Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.routsong.com.