ELKHART, Ind. (Mennonite Mission Network)–Known for her wit, passion, and dedication to mission, Barbara Katherine Reber, 86, of Goshen, passed away at her home Tuesday, Jan. 31, after a long battle with failing health.
Reber and her husband, Donald, served in Japan with Mennonite Board of Missions (a predecessor agency of Mennonite Mission Network) from 1952-1966. They returned for several shorter assignments after retiring.
Barbara also co-founded and served several times with the SOOP program.
Launched in 1990, SOOP was initially a volunteer program that focused on retirees who wanted to continue serving. The program now attracts people of all ages. During SOOP’s 20th anniversary commemoration in which Reber was honored, she told Mission Network that the way in which elders are treated in Japanese culture inspired her to find a way to help older generations do service.
“In Japan, we saw older people valued and appreciated,” Reber was quoted as saying. “They were treated with a respect we didn’t see in America. I [wanted] a program that would allow our older people to share their gifts and talents in their retirement years.”
John F. Lapp, Mennonite Mission Network’s director for Asia and the Middle East, said he always appreciated “her buoyant spirit and great energy for mission.”
Barbara Katherine Reber. Photo provided.
“As a former worker in Japan, she was always interested in the ongoing vision held by the Japanese church,” Lapp said. “Barbara was never without a well-considered opinion, and I have always enjoyed discussing and debating with her the affairs of the church both in this country and abroad.”
Reber was born Nov. 13, 1925, in Milford, Neb., to the late David Elmer and Elizabeth Emma (Rediger) Bender. After graduating from Milford High School in 1942, Reber attended both Hesston (Kan.) College and Goshen (Ind.) College.
In addition to her mission service, she also worked as a bank executive in Lombard, Ill., and as executive secretary for the Women’s Missionary Service Commission for the Mennonite Church.
She was a dedicated member of College Mennonite Church in Goshen, having served as a greeter.
Reber is survived by her husband, whom she married June 16, 1946, in Milford, Neb. Also surviving are four daughters, Karen Sue Senft of Goshen; Beth Ann Reber Wenger of Harrisonburg, Va.; Mary Kay (Dan) Hostetler of Rochester, Minn.; and Carol Jean (Larry) Brundege of Moneta, Va.; a son, Jon (Kimberly) Reber of Columbia, N.J.; 11 grandchildren; eight great-grandchildren; and a brother, Merle Bender, of Hesston, Kan.
Reber was preceded in death by a sister, Dorothy Bender, and a brother, Merton Bender.
A memorial service is planned for 11:30 a.m. Friday, Feb. 3, at College Mennonite Church, 1900 S. Main Street in Goshen. Memorials may be made to College Mennonite Church or to Mennonite Mission Network.
###
Mennonite Mission Network, the mission agency of Mennonite Church USA, leads, mobilizes and equips the church to participate in holistic witness to Jesus Christ in a broken world. Media may contact Andrew Clouse at andrewc@mmnworld.net, 574-523-3024 or 866-866-2872, ext. 23024.
