Rachel Mae Piller

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Visitation:
Saturday, January 22, 2022
5:00 PM - 7:00 PM
Secor Funeral Home
Willard, Ohio

Service:
Monday, January 24, 2022
11:00 AM
Greenwood Cemeter
Willard, Ohio

Rachel Piller, adored wife to her husband, Dr. Charles Piller; beloved mother to her three daughters, Charlene Moll, Cheri Klassen, Nancy Spence; and treasured grandmother to seven grandchildren and four great grandchildren, passed away on January 15, 2022 causing a stir amongst the living since no one believed she would cross of her own volition. She had confessed not more than a year back and several false alarms later that she really was in much better shape than anyone would give credit and people really should stop fussing (hence, she took hospice in good stead, but thought it was hooey).

This warm, sweet natured, and surprisingly stubborn woman came prematurely into this world on January 26, 1928 in Columbus, Ohio. So tiny that a teacup could fit on her head. Her parents, the late Forrest & Marie Hupp, nurtured her to life with eye droppers of milk while keeping her bundled up, thus creating the most advanced neonatal unit of the Depression. Two years later, her cherished brother Donald (no longer with us) was born.

It is difficult to capture the loving, practical essence of this woman. She was a child of the Depression and always tried to make-do and waste nothing ever.  Her ability to reduce, reuse, and recycle put even the most die-hard conservationist to shame! “It’s good enough for the farm,” she liked to say. The only resource she didn’t conserve was mint chocolate chip ice cream.

Rachel loved each of us fiercely in spite of our glaring and peculiar flaws. But do not even think of crossing her by not promptly putting away your laundry, being late for dinner, or saying one disparaging word against her loved ones. When Rachel’s dander was up, she was mighty. She once chased a bully down the street, beating him with the back of her shoe because he picked on her little brother, Donald.

In her heart, she really was a farm girl who loved to walk barefoot in the grass, bake elderberry pies (she made the BEST pies, but if you haven’t tried one by now–it is too late), work hard, and pet any stray animal. There wasn’t a dog she met that she didn’t love or a hungry bird she did not feed. She made sure her yard was a sanctuary for wild critters, and brazenly tied a bell to her neighbor’s cat when it tried to use her feeders as a bird buffet. One fond childhood memory took place during Prohibition. Her grandfather introduced her to an improvised biergarten, located in a field, he told jokes and let her & her brother enjoy their own beer. Bottoms up to YOU mom! Her childhood was idyllic summers spent with grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins on their respective farms.

Just after the war, she attended Ohio State, earning a Bachelor of Science in Nursing. There, she crossed paths with a dashing fellow whose rakish shock of curly brown hair caught her attention. Haplessly drawn to his commanding figure, intelligent gaze, and swell dancing skills, she fell hard for Charles Piller. So hard, in fact, that 70 years later—she found him handsome as ever, even sans the hair. She worked at University Hospital, at Willard Hospital, and in private duty until she became an integral part of her husband’s dental practice in Willard, Ohio for the next thirty years. Their happiest hours were spent dancing (round, square, circle, ballroom), enjoying good food, and taking no prisoners in Scrabble. They cuddled on the couch and took bike rides down country paths. They enjoyed spending time with their children and their grandchildren; they went on hikes and train rides across mountains and over rivers. They loved life. Meanwhile, she refused to age along the way, while her poor husband appeared older by the year. No one speaks of it, of course. That would be rude.

Mom, you were beautiful, funny, and kind. And, you will be missed. This crazy world is now just a little less loving, a little less fun, and a whole lot emptier without you.

Visiting hours will be held Saturday, January 22nd. at the Secor Funeral Home from 5p.m-7p.m. Burial will be conducted on Monday, January 24th at 11:00 a.m. at the Greenwood Cemetery.  Contributions in her memory may be made to Heartland Hospice or Grace Methodist Church.