Montezuma - Wayne Dean Koehn was born on December 27, 1932, to William H. and Laurine Becker Koehn in Tribune. Dad peacefully passed away on October 26, 2023, at Bethel Home in Montezuma, reaching the age of 90 years.

Dad's childhood days were spent in Halstead, where he went to school, delivered papers, and played basketball with his brothers. He accepted Christ as his Savior while attending the local Baptist Church. After coming home from the Army, he moved to Montezuma, where he renewed his covenant with God and was baptized into the Church of God in Christ Mennonite by Minister Willard Johnson on August 7, 1955.

Dad fell in love with Gloria Dirks. They were married on September 4, 1955, by David J Koehn in a double wedding ceremony with Raymond Ensz and Joan Dirks, mother's sister. They were married for over 68 years.

Folks spent most of their years in the Ulysses area, where Dad worked in the floor covering trade for over 50 years! In 2008, they moved to Halstead, and finally to Montezuma in 2019. Dad thoroughly enjoyed their time at Keams Canyon, sharing the salvation story with the Navajos Indians. The time there left an impression on Dad. He loved to sing and talk in Navajo up until he began to suffer from dementia.

Dad was fiercely competitive and endeavored to do the best in everything he did. At times, this constant striving left him struggling in his Christian walk and caused him to doubt his brethren until he found himself out of fellowship with God. But God continued to pursue him and, with a miracle of His grace, found him, leaving him with this testimony: "I have never known a peace like this in all my life." We are comforted by the gentle spirit our father possessed after this experience.

Books: Dad loved books and read many, many books. He also gave many away, saying, "Here, you should read this".  Out of all the books, the Bible was by far the most important to him, and Dad read it repeatedly, often underlining and highlighting. He talked about the Bible and quoted it often.

Those left to cherish fond memories are his loving wife, Gloria; four children: Bruce and his wife Julene of Homeworth, Ohio, Brad and his wife Naomi of Bradley, Arkansas, Tina and her husband, Elwon Wilson of Montezuma, and Will and his wife Natalie of Stover, Missouri; 13 grandchildren; and 17 great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his parents, four brothers, one half-brother, and one infant sister.

We, as a family, deeply appreciate the solicitous care given to our father while at Bethel Home. He felt loved and appreciated there.

Funeral service will be held at Homeland Mennonite Church, Montezuma on Wednesday, November 1, 2023 at 10:30 AM.  Burial will follow at Homeland Mennonite Cemetery.  Visitation will be at Swaim Funeral Chapel, Montezuma on Tuesday, October 31, 2023 from 10:00 AM to 3:00PM.  Memorials are suggested to Bethel Home in care of the funeral home.  Thoughts and memories may be shared in the online guest book at www.swaimfuneralhome.com.