Obituaries, June 21, 2023
Susan "Susie" Diane Hackler
Susan "Susie" Diane Hackler, 65, Kokomo, IN passed away unexpectedly in her home on June 16, 2023. Born Oct 8, 1957, to the late Albert Hackler, Jr. and Edna Eudeana (Douglas) Hackler.
She graduated summa cum laude from Eastern High School in 1976 where she was a member of the National Honor Society. Susie went on to graduate from Ball State University in 1980 with a B.S. in Journalism. She received scholarship honors from Alpha Lambda Freshman Honorary, Ball State State Scholarship, DeMotte Freshman Scholarship, and the Journalism Alumni Service Scholarship. She won second place in the Indiana Collegiate Press Award. She was a reporter for the Ball State Daily News and served as a Features and Reviews writer. As a freelance writer she had a feature story published in Firehouse magazine.
Susie worked for Kmart as a floor supervisor and as part of their remodeling crew for stores in and around central Indiana. She also worked at the Howard County News (Greentown) writing features and local human interest stories and served as interim editor in 1982 covering the 4-H Fair, Eastern's teacher contract negotiations, and school year openings. Susie won first place in Division 1 of the Hoosier State Press Association's Better Newspaper Contest for Best Feature Story in 1982. She worked in Assembly at Chrysler from April 1994 until her retirement in April 2021.
She was a beloved sister to Norma Jean (Stephen) Sciortino, James (Corrine) Hackler, David Hackler, Robert Hackler, Carolyn Hackler, Richard (Gail) Hackler and Deborah (Michael) Orr.
She was "Aunt Susie" to Ann Marie Purciful, Karen (Scott) Sciortino-Poulter, Becky (Andy) Jenkins, Melissa (Chris) Speck, Laurie (Jason) Weaver, Jessica (Drew) Shipley, Stephanie (Brandon) Beck, Emily Hackler, Nick Hackler, Kelli (Zac) Lyon, Kerri (Greg) Stone, Aric Dale Hackler, Levi (Cassie) Hackler, Ross Wolf, Whitney Orr and numerous great nieces and nephews.
She was preceded in death by her parents, brother-in-law Stephen Sciortino and nephew-in-law Andrew "Drew" Shipley.
A funeral service will be held at 11 am on Monday June 26, 2023, at Shirley & Stout Funeral Home, 1315 W. Lincoln Road, with Pastor Jason Grant officiating. Burial will follow in Greenlawn Cemetery. Friends may visit with the family from 1 pm to 4 pm on Sunday June 25, 2023, at the funeral home. In addition to flowers, memorial contributions may be made to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital at stjude.org or Riley Hospital for Children at give.rileykids.org. Messages of condolence may be left online at www.shirleyandstout.com.
Timothy M. “Tim” Gabbard
Timothy M. “Tim” Gabbard, 50, Kokomo, passed away at 6:44 a.m. Saturday, June 17, 2023, at Community Howard Regional Health. He was born August 30, 1972, in Kokomo to William and Evelyn Gabbard.
Tim worked as a mechanic and loved being on the road in his truck or on his Harley. He enjoyed music, fishing, cookouts with friends and family, and will be remembered for his sense of humor.
He is survived by his children, Cole Gabbard and Hope Gabbard; fiancé, Gina Hodges; granddaughter, Sawyer Gabbard; brother, Mike Whittaker; sister, Donna Carroll; as well as many nieces, nephews and great-nieces and nephews.
He was preceded in death by his parents; daughter, Tina Marie Gabbard; sister, Tina Smith; brother, Billy Gabbard; and stepmom, Carol Gabbard.
Funeral services will be at 4:00 p.m. Saturday, June 24, 2023, at Shirley & Stout Funeral Home & Crematory, 1315 West Lincoln Road. Friends may visit with the family from 2:00 p.m. until service time Saturday at the funeral home. Memorial contributions may be made to Shirley & Stout to assist the family with final expenses. Messages of condolence may be left at www.shirleyandstout.com.