Susan B Koehlinger

Susan Koehlinger, a dedicated teacher, avid photographer, and lifelong alto, died October 7 at Lutheran Hospital in Fort Wayne. She was 77. She spent much of her career teaching high-school journalism and English, and she found some of her greatest joy in the classroom. “School has always been a happy place for me,” she told The News-Sentinel in a 1993 story about her selection as a finalist for Indiana Teacher of the Year. “I feel at home here. ”Listen to her former students from Concordia Lutheran and Huntington North High Schools and you’ll learn that she made them at home, too. She kept them laughing, she made them feel heard, and she encouraged them to express themselves, even if what they thought wasn’t popular. She taught them the value of doing something way past good, the reward of seeing a big project through, the importance of deadlines, and the love of a great font. They recalled how she started English class by throwing a funeral for “alot,” which, she would explain, was not a real word and definitely not one she wanted to keep editing out of essays. They said she trusted them, that she respected them. They thanked her for believing in them, and for helping them believe in themselves, too. When she wasn’t in front of a classroom, she was often behind a camera — and she spent many summers teaching photojournalism to high-school students at Ball State University, Michigan State University, and Gettysburg College. Her favorite photos were filled with the candid moments of everyday life, of old companions talking on the beach and kids rejoicing in the splash of a puddle made by a passing car. In retirement Susan delighted in the company of her cat, Haley, in the hibiscuses blooming in her solarium, and in knitting shawls and soft blankets to comfort family, friends, and strangers in need. She relished the warmth she found living back in the home where she grew up. And she loved singing with the Trinity English Lutheran Church choir. Susan was a graduate of Concordia Lutheran High School in Fort Wayne and of Valparaiso University. She earned a master’s degree from the University of Missouri-St. Louis. She was born in Fort Wayne to Stamford and Esther Koehlinger, whose stollen recipe she carried on for many years. She is survived by her three children: Sara Hebel of Arlington, Va. (Lisa), Nathan Hebel of Montreal, Canada (Julie), and Laura Jay of Yorktown, Va. (Eric); five grandchildren: William Hebel, Sofia Hebel, and Rosie Hebel of Montreal, and Elliott Jay and Reid Jay of Yorktown; three siblings: Gwen Knipstein of Carmel, Ind. (Rich), Kim Koehlinger of Fort Wayne, Ind. (Donna), and Greg Koehlinger of Palatine, Ill. (Rhonda); and many nieces and nephews. In lieu of flowers donations can be made to Black Pine Animal Sanctuary, Lutheran Children’s Hospital Child Life Services, and Trinity English Lutheran Church. A celebration of life will be held at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday November 4, at Trinity English Lutheran Church, 450 Washington Blvd., in Fort Wayne, with a reception to immediately follow at he church. Burial will be in Concordia Cemetery Gardens. Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.HockemeyerMillerFH.com for the Koehlinger family.