Richard "Rick" Housel

Richard E. "Rick" Housel, 80 of Huntertown, passed into the loving arms of his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ on Tuesday, February 11, 2025, while vacationing in Panama City Beach, FL. He was born on December 12, 1944, in Everett, Pennsylvania, to the late Blair and Mona (Brallier) Housel. Rick graduated from Central High School in 1962 and Manchester College with a degree in business in 1968. He obtained his teaching license and master's degrees from Ball State University in 1972. He married his college sweetheart, the former Donell Hochstetler, in Bremen on December 16, 1967, and they moved to Van Buren, where they invested themselves in the local community for the next 20 years, making many longtime friends and raising their two children. Rick began his teaching career at Eastbrook Community School Corporation in 1968, teaching middle school math. He then moved to the high school, teaching business classes and assisting with wrestling and football programs. Rick took a few years away from teaching to work in real estate and property management but missed the student interaction he had in teaching. He returned to teaching at Northrop High School in Fort Wayne in 1975, where he taught business law, ran the Cooperative Office Program, and was involved with athletic activities. He was very invested in the students he taught and proud of their accomplishments in competitive state and national events. Unfortunately, his teaching career ended somewhat abruptly around 1994 when he was diagnosed with multiple myeloma and given a survival rate of three years. Treatment meant high-dose chemo, radiation, and trips to the Arkansas Cancer Research Center. But God had other plans for Rick's life as he celebrated thirty-one years of life this February, living with multiple myeloma. He was a true miracle, and God was always one step ahead of him with new medications and excellent, compassionate care teams. Rick was raised in the Church of the Brethren in Pennsylvania, where he gave his heart and life to the Lord at age 13 and was baptized. He never wavered in his trust in the Lord and continued to grow in faith, attending the Van Buren Methodist Church (Church of the Vine) with his wife and children. Rick sang in the choir and participated in numerous cantatas with the choir. When he relocated due to his teaching job in Fort Wayne, the family attended several churches until joining the County Line Church of God in Auburn. Rick had an appreciation for all things in nature from when he was a child hunting, fishing, and riding his horse, Champ, in the mountains surrounding his rural home. As an adult, he continued to love being in the woods and on the water and sharing these experiences with his son, daughter, and grandchildren. He loved sharing his childhood stories with the kids and grandkids alike. Taking the family to state parks and sharing his thoughts about respect for all living things was part of his DNA. He was a man of respect, responsibility, and integrity. His family was of utmost importance to him, and he wanted more than anything for each one to embrace faith in God and live productive, fulfilling lives. He would do anything for them and was generous and gracious with anyone he saw struggling. He will be so greatly missed. Leaving behind to share his memory are his wife of 57 years, Donell Housel of Huntertown; his son, Aaron Housel of Auburn; his daughter, Marla (Shane Compton) Housel of Huntertown; five grandchildren, Victoria Hansel, Whitney Reynolds, Jacob Hansel, Kayleigh Blake, and Madison Housel. He also leaves the following precious great-grandchildren behind; Emily, Aiden, Carter Hansel, Maverick, Emery, Byron, and Vera Blake, and a future baby boy, Reynolds, due in July. Rick is survived by a brother, Ronald (Zana) Housel of Everett, PA; a sister, Sandra (Joe) of Lakewood, Ohio; plus numerous cousins, friends, teaching buddies, and former students that he cherished. A celebration of Rick's life will be held at noon, on April 5, 2025, the Sheets & Childs Funeral Home, Churubusco Chapel, with calling beginning at 10:00 a.m. Memorial contributions may be given in honor of Rick's life to County Line Church of God, Church of the Vine, or the ARK animal shelter in LaGrange, IN. Sheets & Childs Funeral Home has been entrusted with these arrangements.