Rita M. Engle, 74, of Bluffton, passed away on Sunday evening, Aug. 27, 2023, at River Terrace Estates in Bluffton.
Rita was born on Feb. 23, 1949, in Hammond, Ind., to Harry and Margaret (Zimmer) Zaleta.
On July 15th, 1972, in Lansing, Illinois, she married Dean Engle, whom she had met in Rome, Italy.
Rita graduated from Thorton Fractional High School with the class of 1967. Following high school, she attended the University of Illinois where she graduated as a registered nurse. Rita practiced nursing for over 20 years working at Caylor – Nickel Clinic, Wells Community Hospital, Cooper Rest Home and Visiting Nurses of Fort Wayne and Northeast Indiana. She also taught nursing at St. Joseph Hospital in Fort Wayne. Rita and Dean owned and operated The Main Cleaners in Bluffton for 20 years.
She attended the First Presbyterian Church for 48 years. She was also a breast cancer survivor.
Survivors include her husband, Dean of Bluffton; daughters, Jennifer (Jeremy) Daugherty of Bluffton, and Patricia (Shawn Schmidt) Engle of Portland, Ore, along with three grandchildren, Kimberly (Malcolm) Marshall, Jared Neireiter and Alexis Neireiter, all of Bluffton, and a great-grandson, Maverick Marshall. She is also survived by her brother, Jack Zaleta of Ossian, and a special cousin, Linda McCann of Atlanta, Ga., and her faithful black lab, Gemma.
She was preceded in death by her parents and a brother, James Zaleta.
Visitation will take place from 3-7 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 1, 2023, at the Thoma/Rich, Lemler Funeral Home in Bluffton.
Funeral Services will take place at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 2, 2023, at the First Presbyterian Church with the Rev. Terry Epling officiating. There will be an hour of visitation before the service at the church.
Burial will follow at the Garden of Chimes at Elm Grove Cemetery in Bluffton.
Memorials may be made to the First Presbyterian Church in Rita’s memory. Funeral arrangements have been entrusted to the care of the Lemler family of Thoma/Rich, Lemler Funeral Home in Bluffton. Friends can send online condolences to the family at
www.thomarich.com.