Sylvia Fay Allen

Sylvia Fay Allen, 69, of Decatur, Indiana passed away Tuesday afternoon, March 17, 2020, at Parkview Regional Medical Center in Fort Wayne, Indiana.

She was born on December 28, 1950 in Decatur, Indiana to Wilbert E. and Lucile E. (Steele) Stoppenhagen. She married Jerry G. Allen on August 25, 1979 in Canon City, Colorado.

Sylvia was a member of Zion Lutheran Church in Decatur.

She received her bachelor’s degree in journalism from Southern Colorado University and a master’s degree in community education from Colorado State University. She was the head librarian at Gretna Public Library in Gretna, Nebraska. She had previously been an extension agent in Fremont County, Colorado and had worked as a reporter for the Canon City Sun.

She loved reading and was a bibliophile. She was very good at crafts and an excellent seamstress. She took pride in cataloging family photos.

She is survived by her husband, Jerry Allen of Decatur, Indiana; daughter, Kari (Keith) Spangler of Weeping Water, Nebraska; son, Aaron Allen of Glenpool, Oklahoma; granddaughter, Cadence Allen; mother, Lucile E. Stoppenhagen of Decatur, Indiana; three sisters, Sheila Stoppenhagen of Fort Wayne, Indiana, Sandra (Ken) Uhrick of Decatur, Indiana, and Sharlene Hempel of Willis, Texas; brother, Stan (Tami) Stoppenhagen of Decatur, Indiana; and numerous nieces and nephews.

She was preceded in death by her father and a brother, Stephen Stoppenhagen.

Private family services will be held. Private burial was held at Decatur Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorials to be given to Cystic Fibrosis Research, Inc. or Zion Lutheran Library (checks payable to Zion Lutheran).

Arrangements by Zwick & Jahn Funeral Home in Decatur, Indiana.