Darlene was born in Elyria, Ohio on December 7, 1932. She married Melvin Bauer in 1957 and moved to Ashland. Melvin served as the city engineer for Ashland until his retirement. They raised five children and both stressed the importance of education and giving back to the community. Darlene anonymously donated to many charities throughout her life, but since her passing on September 2, 2021, her children thought it would be fitting to recognize her contribution to the Ashland County Community Foundation and are excited and humbled to be told of the new fund that has been created in her memory, the Darlene A. Bauer Unrestricted Fund.

Darlene was a member of St. Edward Catholic Church. She taught art classes at St. Edward School for 10 years. Darlene was also an aide at Montgomery, Lincoln, and St. Edward School. She volunteered at Samaritan Hospital for over 20 years and she also worked at the St. Edward Hunger Center for roughly the same amount of time.

Darlene was a teacher, a decorator, and an artist during her lifetime, but her true passion was being a wife to Melvin and sharing their love of the Ashland community in which they enjoyed such a wonderful life with their family and friends. Her contribution to the Ashland County Community Foundation was her way of seeing to the continuation of the great things that they had witnessed in their lives here in Ashland and for the continuation of Ashland’s promising future.

Prepared 2022.