Martha L. Wills

Martha Wills passed away peacefully on Wednesday, July 30. She was born in Middletown, Ohio on June 6, 1934. She graduated from Middletown High School in 1952. She married her high school sweetheart, Melvin Wills, on May 22, 1954. She moved across the street from her parents farm into the farmhouse owned by her Aunt Mary Graves. She was the mother of three daughters, Deborah Shackleford (Richard), Carolyn Diehl (Robert) and Martha Giller who survive her. She is survived by her grandchildren, Deanna Kons (Nate), April Kehres (Dan), Michelle Diehl, Paige Wyatt (Dustin), Warren, Hans and Gretchen Giller and her great-grandchildren, Tyler Kehres, Grace and Lexi Kons.

She and Melvin owned and operated a dairy farm for over 40 years. They had one of only two licenses in Ohio to sell raw milk to the public. Martha and her girls raised vegetables and picked and sold five acres of sweet corn in the summer months. They also prepared lunches for the boys who baled alfalfa hay and straw in the summer months. She was an avid walker and a member of the Bulls Run Ramblers volksmarching club in Middletown. She and her daughter, Carolyn, participated in local biking events for several years. She completed the 210-mile Tour of the Scioto River Valley, held over two days in May 1986. She and Carolyn completed a five-day, 250-mile bicycle trip in the Upper Peninsula of MI in July 1986. They rode around Lancaster, PA for several days in August 1986 enjoying the beautiful farms and growing crops. They were in Paradise, MI and Paradise, PA in the same summer.

After the cows were sold, Martha worked at Berns Garden Center and Bick s Driving School, teaching young people to drive. She was the long-time treasurer of the Mt. Pleasant Cemetery Association. Many of her father s relatives are buried in the cemetery, including some revolutionary war veterans in the old cemetery next to Mt. Pleasant Church. Her great grandfather built the farmhouse on Thomas Road in the 1830 s and she was the sixth generation to live in the house.

After she sold the farm, she spent her winters in Sanford, FL near a long-time friend, Fay Neikirk. She spent her summers in WI with her daughter Debbie and her family. She loved to drive from FL to WI every spring and fall and always took a different route away from the interstate highways. She kept diaries of her trips including maps and brochures of places she visited. She loved each Buick LeSabre until it was replaced by a newer one. Her front license plate her friends gave her had Road Runner on it.

She participated in her first Road Scholar (Elderhostel) trip to the Grand Tetons and Yellowstone in 2001. She left before 9/11 and returned safely afterwards. She traveled to many other national and state parks in various states as part of Road Scholar programs. She loved visiting historical sites her whole life.

She was a woman of faith her entire life and was baptized at Mt. Pleasant Primitive Baptist Church. She was the organist there. After she moved to FL, she traveled in her car to many weekend church meetings in most of the southern states. She attended the Carpenter s House Baptist Church in Germantown after she moved back to Middletown in 2022.

She enjoyed attending her great-grandchildren s high school graduations in WI in early June (Tyler and Grace) and visiting with family and friends there. She moved to Ohio Living, Mount Pleasant about a month before her death. Special thanks to the staff at the Mount Pleasant Place apartments, the rehab unit and the skilled nursing wing for their love and care during her last days.

Her service will be held at Carpenter s House Baptist Church in Germantown on Saturday, August 16. Friends may call beginning at 10 a.m. with the service to follow at 11 a.m. Burial will take place at Mt. Pleasant Cemetery immediately after the service. After the graveside service, family and friends are invited to gather back at the church for food and fellowship.

Contributions may be made to Carpenter's House Baptist Church, 93 Worthington Dr., Germantown, OH 45327 or to Mt. Pleasant Cemetery Association, c/o Tina Hurst, 7826 Elk Creek Rd., Middletown, OH 45042.

Sign the guestbook at WilsonSchrammSpaulding.com.