Mendon Union School Alumni Association

08/17/2026

50 year’s ago today, August 17th, 1976. ‘76-‘77 School year. Spencerville Journal-News. Mendon holds line on school lunch prices. What grade were you in?

08/15/2026

I came across this picture my wife took of me before they tore the school down. Gary Counterman

06/25/2026

50 yrs. ago this week. June 18th, 1976. Spencerville Journal-News.

06/23/2026

M-U Alumni loses a great friend. Mary Jo (Dick) Hellwarth. Mary Jo graduated from Celina IC in 1971, but for many years she was a strong supporter of the Mendon-Union Alumni as her father Cy Dick graduated from M-U in 1937. She took it upon herself to donate prizes each year to the M-U Alumni Bingo event in March, donate money to help sponsor entertainment for our Alumni Weekend in May, and when the M-U Alumni spearheaded the Welcome to Mendon sign construction on the west edge of town in 2024, Mary Jo was right there, with a check in hand. She was a great community minded person who cared a lot for our organization and small town. “Thank You Mary Jo”. Prayers for her family!

Celebrate the life of Mary Hellwarth and join others in sharing memories, stories, and condolences.

06/14/2026

06/13/2026

There was a time when this wildflower colored Ohio fields every summer without anyone planting it. Most Ohioans have never seen it in the wild - and a quiet movement of native gardeners is trying to change that one yard at a time.

06/02/2026

The M-U Alumni Committee would like to take this time and thank the many who helped us make the Alumni Weekend a huge success again this year. To all of you who helped sponsor the car show, we had the biggest show ever in our 5 years of putting a car show on, 90+ cars showed up on Saturday morning. Your donations help us put on a really nice small town car show that so many enjoy. To the Fire Dept., thanks for all they do to help make our Saturday morning a great place to come and enjoy a really delicious pancake and sausage breakfast. To everyone who came to the Friday night Railroad presentation at the Library Annex, and the Sunday evening concert in the park. We thank you for coming and we hope you enjoyed both evenings. To everyone who purchased Chicken BBQ tickets, we served 225 delicious carry out dinners catered by Burtch's Barn to Table from Rockford, in just one hour at the Community Church drive thru on Sunday at noon, and I know the ladies of the Community Church thank everyone for purchasing pieces of pie for their missions work also. Thanks to the Church for allowing us to use the social room for our Chicken BBQ. To everyone who came to the Alumni Banquet and support us each and every year coming from as far away as Texas, Georgia, North Carolina, a huge thank you! We appreciate the many who live close by that attend also. We have to keep this 130 year tradition going, and we ask for your continued support. We thank Klaudia Esmonde for starting the M-U Scholarship, and the Alumni is proud to donate to it every year. It’s a great cause. So, we thank you, the M-U Alumni who live all over this great country who still call Mendon home, for being a part of what we do for one weekend out of the year. And finally to my fellow alumni committee members, Thank You for coming out in the cold the first Thursday in January each year, and meeting every month till June to plan for this. Your dedication and hard work never goes unnoticed. Many thanks! So, with that being said, we’ll close out this 130th chapter of the Mendon-Union Alumni, and we will invite you to the 131st Annual M-U Alumni Banquet, Saturday June 5th, 2027, where we’ll honor the 50 year class of 1977. We'll start planning for next year's M-U Alumni Weekend in early January '27. We hope you have a great summer, and we’ll look forward to seeing you all again next year!

06/02/2026

On Friday evening May 29th, to start out the Alumni Weekend, 56 people attended the CH&D Railroad presentation put on by local railroad historian and current rail conductor Andrew Enyart of New Haven, Ind., at the Library Annex building sponsored by the Alumni committee. The Cincinnati, Hamilton, & Dayton railroad went through Mendon from 1878 to 1923. For 45 years, the railroad served the Mendon community and Union Twp. residents by providing passenger service to neighboring towns as well as transporting lumber, grain, tomatoes and sugar beets, all sources of the local trade industry at that time, from Mendon to markets further away. The railroads served all the area communities as roads and highways as we know them today didn't exist yet. The CH&D rail went locally east to Spencerville and ended in Delphos, it went west to Mercer, then south to Celina, where it then headed further south through communities headed towards Dayton and Cincinnati. Having it at the Library Annex building was all the more interesting place to have the presentation, as the annex sits on top of where the old railroad tracks went through town. It was an interesting and informative presentation of Mendon's past!

06/01/2026

Obituary for Lois Sullinger Studer. M-U class of ‘68.

Lois Ann (Sullinger) Studer, lovingly known to many as "Big Lou," of Celina, Ohio, passed away peacefully on May 27, 2026, at Grande Lake Health Care Center, just days before her 76th birthday. She was born on May 31, 1950, to Bob and Catherine Sullinger.
Lou was preceded in death by her parents, Bob and Catherine Sullinger, and her brother, Terry Sullinger.
Big Lou was truly the life of the party. If you knew Lou, you knew there was never a dull moment when she was around. She loved music, laughter, good friends, and making memories wherever she went. You could often find her anywhere Raspberry Jam was playing or spending time at the old Thompson's, surrounded by the people she loved most. Thanksgiving was one of her favorite times of year, and everyone knew exactly where the party was - and who made the best dressing.
One of Lou's greatest companions was her beloved dog, Ace, her loyal partner in crime through years of shenanigans and adventures. Ace has since been adopted by one of Lou's closest best friends, Kathy Reed.
In keeping with her wishes, Lou selflessly donated her body to further medical education and research.
At this time, there will be no public service or burial.
Big Lou will be deeply missed by all who knew and loved her, but her laughter, stories, and unforgettable spirit will live on in the hearts of many.

06/01/2026

M-U class of 1976. 50 year reunion at the Shelter house at the former school grounds on Sunday May 31st, 2026. Pictured here in front of the M-U school memorial is L-R. Reid Diegel, Scott Hesse, Gary Nosek, Terry England, Randy Christian, Jenifer Sites Smith, Linda Emans Lloyd, Nancy Dick Weatherington, Greg McGillvary.