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Obituaries
Oct 8, 2025
Donald Dwight Bair
Donald Dwight Bair, age 97, of Celina, died as a result of a traffic
accident on October 3rd.
Dwight was born April 23, 1928 to Gifford & Lucille (Elder) Bair in
Center Township.
He was the last surviving member of the 1946 graduating class of
Neptune (Center Township) High School.
Dwight married Virginia McGee on February 12, 1950 in the Parsonage
of Celina First Church of God. They raised 3 children: Bruce (Rita) Bair
of Cincinnati, David (Wayne Winters) Bair of Seattle, Washington and
Glenna Bair, who preceded him in death in 2020. Virginia passed away
on October 18, 2021.
In addition to Bruce and David, Dwight is survived by sister Dorothy Garwick
of Mendon, 6 grandchildren: Rachel (Ben) Levien, Ryan (Caitlin) Bair, Laura
Denning, Philip (Katelyn) Denning, Megan (Kemp) Lyons, and Andrew (Rebecca)
Bair, and 9 great grandchildren: Sky, Frances, Tilda, Henry, Darcy, Wyatt, Magnus,
Cyrus, and Vivienne.
A daughter-in-law Carolyn Bair, and his brother-in-law Clifford "Howdy" Garwick,
also preceded Dwight in death.
Dwight loved growing things, making things, and fixing things. While the farm was
central to his world, he also spent many years running a gun repair shop before
branching out into die building and repair during the early days of Pax Machine.
He was always working, whether it was milking the dairy herd or planting and
harvesting with Gifford, fabricating a replacement for a broken gun part, or
building and repairing stamping dies.
Dwight was born into a relationship with the Neptune Church of God, where he
served much of his adult life as a leading member, from salvaging the contents
of the burning structure of the first building, through the design and construction
of its replacement, to cleaning up after multiple flooding events in the basement
of that new church. If the monitor detected rising water, the alarm went off at
his house. The decision to close it hit him hard, even though his practical farmer
side knew it was the right decision.
But his faith went beyond building management and rituals. The same intellect
that drove him to look for ways to understand how to create and repair farm
equipment, guns, and stamping dies, led him to exploration of theology and
Ideas that he would not encounter on Sunday.
While home best suited his introverted nature, Dwight had fond memories of
motorcycle camping trips to North Carolina, Florida, Colorado, and Canada,
sometimes to visit, and sometimes just to see new things.
Dwight would deeply regret any pain and loss suffered by those involved in
the crash, and his family and friends, who will miss his ornery sly sense of
humor and generosity of spirit.
Private Graveside Services to honor Dwight, Virginia, and Glenna, will be
held at a future date, at Elm Grove Cemetery in St. Marys.
Condolences may be shared with Dwight's family at:
dickandsonshellwarthfh.com.
Arrangements are under the direction of:
W.H. Dick & Sons-Hellwarth Funeral Home, of Celina.
