Ann Engeler

Ann Amerson Engeler died on Friday, April 5, 2024 in Springdale Arkansas at the age of 83. She was born January 8, 1941 to Mr. and Mrs. Gordon Frederick Engeler of New Augusta in Indianapolis, Indiana. The fourth of six children, she was raised on a dairy farm until the family moved to the Wayside Inne in Gamaliel, Arkansas in 1957. As a teen she was involved in a tragic accident and shattered both of her legs, requiring pins, forever hampering her mobility.

Following her graduation from Mountain Home High School in 1959, she attended the University of Arkansas where she received a B.A. in English in 1963. During her time at the University of Arkansas she was a member of the Alpha Delta Pi sorority. She taught high school English for the first half of her teaching career in the St. Louis, Missouri school district. During her time in St. Louis, she completed her M.A. in English, after which time she began teaching at the college level in Connecticut. Ann spent her final two decades teaching as a very popular professor of English writing at Northwest Arkansas Community College. These were her happiest and most rewarding years as a professor of English.

In her spare time Ann enjoyed reading, drawing, traveling, sports, and movies. As a teacher she spent summers traveling, most notably her shipborne travel to Europe, which she referred to often as having the greatest impact on her life. Notably, Ann also enjoyed drawing cartoons depicting the lives of family members and pets. Over many years she kept family mailboxes filled with her creative and humorous hand-drawn birthday and seasonal cards. Ann’s cats were the center of her life, and many cartoons came from her focus on their personalities and antics. She also named her many different cars and assigned them personalities. She followed all sports all year round and knew every statistic from all of them. To those who knew her best, and who understood her humor and personality, she was undeniably a favorite to family, students, and friends. Three generations of nieces and nephews (42 of them) will miss her as she was known affectionately as “Auntie Ann.”

She was preceded in death by her father, Gordon Frederick Engeler Sr; mother, Elisabeth Matilda Jenkins Engeler;  brothers, Gordon Frederick Engeler, II, Rock Jenkins Engeler; sisters, Elisabeth “Buff” Siler, and Susan “Sue” Bell;  grandnephew, Jacob Engeler; and her great-grandniece, Emma Grace Barnett.

She is survived by her brother, William James “Bill” (Linda) Engeler; sisters-in-law, Jean Bachman and Nell Engeler; nephews, Rick Engeler, Rodney (Diana) Engeler, David (his late wife, Paula) Engeler, John (Jenny) Snyder, Jr., James (Mariann) Finch, Bobby (Sarah) Engeler-Young, and Derrek Engeler; nieces, Margee (John) Taylor, Sally (Darrel) Williams, Kim (Steve) Wood, and Ellen (Fred) Rainey; grandnephews, Kyle Williams, Eric Engeler, Julius (Nicole) Rainey, Benjamin Rainey, Alex Engeler, Samuel Rainey, Charles Wood, John Snyder, III, William Snyder, and Jackson Engeler; grandnieces, Nikki (Brandon) Hodge, Ashton (Brian) Barnett, Megan Engeler, Rose Rainey, Zelda Engeler-Young, and Latasha (Austin) Miller; great-grandnephews, Dryer Barnett, Ryan Hodge, Bryson Hodge, Mattie Hodge, and Jordan Hodge; and great-grandnieces, Eleanor Barnett, Bailey Hodge, Piper Rainey, and Zoey Rainey.

Visitation will be Thursday, April 11, 2024, 5:00 pm - 7:00 pm, at Kirby & Family Funeral Home. A Memorial Service for Ann will be 10:00 am, Friday, April 12, 2024, at St. Andrew's Episcopal Church, with Reverend Dr. Robert "Bob" Williams officiating. Burial will be in the Mountain Home Cemetery.  

Arrangements are by Kirby and Family Funeral and Cremation Services - Mountain Home, Arkansas. Visit an online obituary and guestbook at www.kirbyandfamily.com.