Doris D. Swartzentruber, 101, died Oct. 30, 2023. She was born May 22, 1922, in Petersburg, Ont., the eldest child of Amos and Edna (Litwiller) Swartzentruber. She grew up in Argentina, where her parents were missionaries with Mennonite Board of Missions. She was raised bilingual, and her early education was in Spanish.
In 1943 she married Clifford Snyder in Kitchener, Ont., and they had two children, Margaret Anne and Clifford Arnold. In 1947, en route to begin missionary service under MBM in Argentina, Clifford died suddenly and was buried at sea. Doris continued on to Argentina and served there for several years before returning to Indiana to complete a teaching degree at Goshen College.
Education was her passion, which she combined with her organizational and leadership skills to forge a richly rewarding career as an educator. Serving as a Mennonite missionary, she taught in rural Puerto Rico for several years.
Doris lived in many places and was always deeply involved with her community and church. Often she was asked to speak and share her life story.
In 2006 she married Perry Wydman (deceased in 2015), with whom she enjoyed traveling, engaging in short mission projects overseas and visiting family.
In 2016 she moved to Indiana, eventually living in Elkhart, Ind., with daughter Margaret Anne and son-in-law Daniel Schipani. She became an active member at Belmont Mennonite Church.
After her 100th birthday, still aware of the needs of others less fortunate, she used her skills to knit baby items and chemo caps for the local hospital and hemmed many comforters by hand for Mennonite Central Committee relief programs.
She is survived by daughter Margaret Anne (Daniel Schipani); son Clifford Arnold Snyder; stepdaughters Bonnie Dwyer and Nancy (Jim Kresge); sister Anita Swartzentruber de García; and numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
She was preceded in death by her brother, A. Orley Swartzentruber, and his wife, Jane; stepdaughter Suzanne Geerdink; and brother-in-law Raúl O. García.
The memorial service will be at 11 a.m. Nov. 25 at Belmont Mennonite Church.
