Arthur "Art" D. Habegger

Arthur D. “Art” Habegger, 88, of Adams County, Indiana passed away Monday, May 15, 2023, at his residence following a brief illness.

He was born on December 26, 1934, in Decatur, Indiana to the late Noah L. and Barbara (Graber) Habegger.

Art was united in marriage to Marian Marr who was from Detroit, Michigan, on September 8, 1956. They met while at Taylor University…and the rest they say is history.

Art was a member of Grace Bible Church where he faithfully served as an elder, Sunday School teacher, and occasional pulpit supply. Art and Marian loved to serve together whenever possible. He was a recent member of Gideons.

He was born into a small German community and spoke only German until the age of 5. Art graduated from Berne-French High School and later went on to receive a B.S. degree in 1956 from Taylor University and a Master’s degree 1961- 1962, from Indiana University. He was President of Taylor University Alumni Association and the Indiana University HPER Association for several years.  His teaching and coaching career began at Butler Township (Kokomo), Poling High School (Jay Co), Montpelier HS (Montpelier, OH), Madison Township (Jay Co). Art spent his last 31 years in education at Adams Central. While at Adams Central Art taught Business, Elementary Physical Education and was Athletic Director. He coached basketball, football, baseball, and golf. Following his retirement from teaching, he worked part-time at the Indiana Auto Auction for over 20 years. He also continued to service his community by working with John Kirchhofer at the Yager-Kirchhofer Funeral Home, now the Zwick and Jahn Funeral Home, Yager-Kirchhofer Chapel. He derived great pleasure in greeting his former students, colleagues, and friends while at the same time providing comfort and support to those at their time of loss.

Being a long-time Driver’s Education Instructor was one of Art’s duties while teaching. Many students “graduated” from his course over the years. If you knew Art, you knew that the happiest place for most of his life was playing golf, where he was a member of the Wabash Valley Golf Course. He played for over 70 years, organizing many golf leagues and outings, and even had 4 holes-in-one!  He was able to play golf in almost every state in the union. He also enjoys watching Adams Central athletic events, especially wrestling and IU athletic events. A continuous teacher, he had a great passion for helping people, young and old in whatever they were seeking to achieve. Marian and Art loved exploring the world. They were fortunate to visit almost every state in the union along with many parts of the world. One of Art’s “bucket list” achievements was being able to watch the Dodgers play in many stadiums throughout the country.

He is survived by his wife, Marian Habegger; two daughters, Debra (Walter) Wilson and Dawn (Keith) Wilson; sister, DeVona (Habegger) Amstutz; five grandchildren, Aaron Wilson (Katarzyna Michalik), Randi Wilson, Craig Wilson (Jamie Leach), Eric Wilson and Alex Wilson; five great-grandchildren, Winter Wilson, Damien Finn, Bradaigh Finn (Aaron & Kasia) Madeline Wilson, Emily Wilson (Craig & Jamie); four nieces, Jenny (Wulliman) Beer, Maribeth (Wulliman) Smitley, Laura (Amstutz) Simmons and Denise Amstutz.

Art is preceded in death by a sister, Elizabeth "Bette" (Graber) Wulliman.

A Memorial Service will be held at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, June 10, 2023, at Swiss Village with Rev. Dr. Jeff Gaskill officiating.

A Memorial Visitation will be held for family and friends from 11:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, June 10, 2023, at the Swiss Village Auditorium.

The family would like to continue Art’s giving heart and would appreciate in lieu of flowers or other items a donation be made to one of the following organizations in his memory: Grace Bible Church/Tiny Treasures; ACCF – Adams Central Scholarship Fund or Swiss Village Endowment Fund. Please make checks payable to the organization and mail to Zwick & Jahn at 520 N. 2nd Street, Decatur, IN  46733.

Arrangements are by the Zwick and Jahn Funeral Home, Yager-Kirchhofer, Chapel in Berne, Indiana.