Ina Ruth Breckbill

Memorial Service will be streamed via Waterford Mennonite Church, Saturday, Oct. 15, 2022 beginning shortly before the 11 a.m. (EST) service, click : https://waterfordchurch.org/streaming/

for viewing after the service date visit: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCIGVoJKGK5fMsk1VyE-F9-w/videos

Ina Ruth (Krabill) Breckbill was born to Mahlon and Mary Ellen (Conrad) Krabill on April 18, 1929, in Louisville, Ohio.  She died on September 9, 2022, in Orrville, Ohio, at the age of 93.  She will be lovingly remembered by her immediate and extended family and the many, many people who called her “friend”.

Ina Ruth graduated from Louisville High School and attended Goshen College, Goshen, where she was an education major.  At Goshen College she met the love of her life, Willis “Bill” Breckbill.  They were married on August 14, 1954, at Beech Mennonite Church in Louisville, Ohio.  Ina Ruth was an elementary school teacher for several years in Canton, Ohio, New Paris, and Biglerville, Pennsylvania.  Bill was a pastor and church leader and Ina Ruth loved her role as an encourager and supporter of his work.

Together they pastored at Bethel Mennonite Church (Biglerville, PA), First Mennonite Church (Canton, OH), as Ohio and Eastern Mennonite Conference Minister (while living in Louisville, OH), Preston Mennonite Church (Cambridge, ON), as Indiana-Michigan Mennonite Conference Minister (while living in Goshen, IN), and Waterford Mennonite Church (Goshen, IN). They served in interim pastorates at Southside Fellowship (Elkhart, IN), Greenfield Community (Portadown, Northern Ireland), and Central Mennonite Church (Archbold, OH).  Ina Ruth didn’t enjoy being in front of people, but was at her best making friends and building relationships one on one.  She made friends everywhere she went and found ways to foster and maintain those friendships even after moving away.

Music was a very important part of her life.  She loved playing the piano, going to concerts, and listening to her children play and sing music.  She often led children’s music in Sunday School and Bible School.  Music helped her through hard times and made the good times even better.

People and relationships were at the core of who she was.  She cared about people and they knew it.  She was a committed mother to David, Bruce, Don and Anne.  Her children, and eventually her children’s spouses and their children, were very, very important to her.  Family gatherings, especially at Christmas, were highlights of the year for her.  She also had many close friends with whom she shared love and laughter and good conversation, always with a plate of cookies she had baked and a cup of coffee.  If you were a friend or acquaintance of Ina Ruth, you probably have had one (or many) of her delicious cookies.

In 2020, Ina Ruth moved to OrrVilla Assisted Living in Orrville, Ohio, to be closer to family.  There she continued to make friends and play the piano.  It was a wonderful place for her to live out her last few years.  We are grateful for the excellent care she received at the facility.

Ina Ruth is survived by her children and children-in-law, Anita (David) Breckbill of Lincoln, Nebraska, Bruce and Jill Breckbill of Kidron, Ohio, Don and Carola Breckbill of Stoughton, Wisconsin, Anne Breckbill and Holly Smart of St. Paul, Minnesota.  She is also survived by grandchildren Max (Karen), Hannah, Greta, Ben (Laurel), Madlen, Isaiah (Grace), Anna and Elizabeth and great grandchildren, Auden and Ludo.  Also surviving are Anne and Abner Hershberger (sister and brother-in-law) and Grace Krabill (sister-in-law).  She is preceded in death by Mahlon and Ella Krabill (parents), Willis Breckbill (husband), David Breckbill (son), and Willard Krabill (brother).

Ina Ruth’s ashes will be scattered at Waterford Mennonite Church Memorial Garden in a private ceremony.  Visitation with family will be Saturday, October 15, from 9:30-11:00 a.m. at Waterford Mennonite Church, Goshen, with a memorial service to follow at 11:00 a.m. at the church.  In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be directed to Goshen College Music Center or MCC (Mennonite Central Committee).