Ann, Ted was a great friend and client for 30 years. . I will miss very much talking and working with Ted on his investments. My prayers to you and your family Ann. Valerie and I will be spending the weekend in Hocking Hills . My deepest Sympathy . Dan



The time  since we first met Ted  and became connected through family has not been very long. However it was long enough to reveal clearly the quality of his character. Courageous, patient, enduring and considerate for the sake of his wife and daughters, never complaining for his sudden and untimely misfortune.

He has been an inspiration to us, who had the privilege to know him closely.

The void he left is great for many people, and it will be so for some time, but the good memories and the comforting thoughts will last much longer. The mark he left behind is only positive. You can’t bring Ted to mind without breaking a smile.

We participate in the grief of his family, now our family too, but we take comfort in the knowledge that he is in a place where pain and tears do not exist and in the hope that we will meet some time again.

See you later Ted.

The Raftopoulos family.


I had the sincere pleasure of working with Dr. H. @ Marion General Hospital for about 12 years - offices next door.  He was always in an upbeat mood and was an encouraging type of person.
My sincerest thoughts go out to Ann and his daughters.

     Ted always had a smile on his face even through his fight with cancer.  He also was amazed with everything around him.  I was amazed with his enthusiasm when he described the relationship of a gene in DNA and pancreatic and melanoma.
      I think my first memory of Ted was back at Church Rd.  My brothers and I were chopping a 12" diameter branch off a Siberian Elm which was hanging over the corner of the house.  We had a rope tied into the top of the branch to pull it away from the house while we chopped on the base.  Right at a critical point, the branch was falling and I yelled for Ted to help pull.  Ted ran over and pulled along with the rest of us and the branch missed the house.  The rest of the afternoon was spent chopping up the branch and throwing it behind the pond.  Ted jumped in and helped clean-up the mess.
     Another memory that brings a smile to my face was Ted's card playing ability. Nobody won against him in euchre.  I t seemed like he was looking in your hand every time.  He would throw the card to destroy your hand every time.  Amazing!
     We were playing skat at Jane's house one holiday.  Of course, we would rib the "losers" by putting our hand to our forehead in the shape of an "L" ( for loser) and saying "LOSER".  In the middle of the game after taunting a loser for awhile, Ted demonstrated using his hands that two Losers combined make a "W" as in winner.  The whole table erupted in laughter.
     Ted will be missed at the card table.  He was very dependable, smart, and studious.  His expertise in everything Bond- 007 was another interesting characteristic.
     Again, we'll miss Ted a lot!

Ted was a great guy.  Glad I got to know him when he was in Marion. I will keep your family in my prayers.

Jim Beaver

     Ted and I were colleagues in the Biology Department at Sinclair College.  He was not only a colleague but was also a very dear friend and I was shocked when I first learned of his diagnosis and my heart goes out to Ann and his daughters.

      Our offices were next to each other in the main departmental office.  I can't count the number of times that we were both in our offices working at the same time when one of us would shout out:  "Hey Ted (or Bill), got a minute.  Come see what I found on the internet (or can you help me with this, or I need some advice, or lets talk about improving this or that aspect of a course."  Ted was always willing to talk with me about anything.  Since we both came from clinical backgrounds we would often tell "war stories" about our clinical experiences when we had "free time" together. 

      During our many years at Sinclair, we would attend scientific meetings together in order to keep updated in our areas of interest and to bring new and relevant information into our courses.  Ted was always looking for "real world" information or experiences in order to make his courses more informative, interesting, and relevant for his students.  To this end, Ted was an expert.

      You cannot work with someone together for many years without becoming familiar with their personality.  Ted was always a gentle and kind person liked by everyone who knew him.  I never saw him getting upset about anything or becoming angry at someone.  He always had "class."  

       I will miss Ted greatly but will never forget him because he will remain in my heart and mind forever.

       Goodby my dear friend.

Today, I called Ann and she gave me the sad news of Dr. Heckendorn passing away to Heavenly Abode. It was a shock to me.  I have known Ted for over 30 years while he was working in Columbus as a pathologist.  Ted was quite polite and an unassuming gentleman, I always enjoyed talking with him.  My daughter was having problems in medical school, I mentioned this to him and he prepared special notes for her to study.  We were very appreciative and thankful to him.  I have long and fond memories of our telephone conversations, I will misses these conversations very much. 
My heartfelt condolences to Ann, Emily and Kathryn and their families. 

I have known  Ted and his family for over 30 years . Ted was a good man and I am honored to have known  him. I admired Ted for many things and especially for  his curiosity and  his sense of humor.  I always learned something when I talked with him.  I shall miss him.

While we didn’t have the pleasure of knowing Ted for long, we were still struck by his courage, patience, and love for his family. He endured his illness with so much bravery and patience that it was an inspiring example to everyone around him and one that we will not forget. We pray for the Lord’s comfort that surpasses understanding for all who are grieving his loss, but especially his wife and daughters who are dear to our hearts and constantly on our minds. 

The passing of Ted will definitely leave an empty space in the lives of those of us who knew him.  Ted was one those truly and consistently nice guys that you occasionally encounter in life. If you spent time with him it was obvious that he enjoyed being with people. Likewise, people enjoyed being with him.

I had the privilege of both working with Ted as a teaching colleague and spending time with him outside of work.  At work his colleagues valued the knowledge and experiences in the biological and medical sciences that he brought to our department. His students in turn benefited from this knowledge and the time and effort that he devoted to in being an exceptional classroom professor.  It was not uncommon to overhear students sharing with each other their praise for Dr. Heckendorn.

Some of my best memories of Ted are from the great times that he, Joe K. and I had  traveling together in the West.  These trips usually involved a combination of hiking and backroad travel often in some very remote areas .  Although the three of us were already friends from work at Sinclair College, we developed a special sense of camaraderie as a result of spending a lot of time together out of doors.  You learn a lot about a person when you are with them for 24 hours a day for over a week at a time.  On these trips Ted shared with us his love for the history of the West, exploring back country, and capturing his experiences in photographs.  We always  had such a good time together that we continued these trips for over a decade. Joe and I treasure these memories of our time with Ted.

My wife Jean and I will always think of Ted as one of the kindest, most thoughtful people we will ever know. As kids we enjoyed wonderful times together, playing all day with our siblings Steve,  Lindsay and Barb - although those days were all too rare. As busy adults living in different parts of the country, Dr. Ted and I still did not have much face-to-face contact, but every instance was a welcome one that I will always cherish.  His life blessed ours and so many others. Please be assured of our love and prayers in the days ahead.

OBITUARY

Ted Allan Heckendorn

April 27, 1955 – January 2, 2020

Tobias Funeral Home - Beavercreek Chapel

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