Rolf G. Tauscher

Rolf Gunther Tauscher, 86, of Kent, Ohio, formerly of Red House and Nitro, West Virginia, died April 6, 2022. 

Rolf is survived by his wife of 63 years, Janet Frankwich Tauscher, son KurtTauscher (Sherry), of Kent, Ohio, his daughter Karin Fuller (fiancé Don Patton) of Atlanta, grandchildren Tori, Zachary, and Madeline Tauscher and Celeste Vingle, and great-granddaughters Evelyn and Adaline Tauscher. He is also survived by two brothers, Hermann and Wilfried Tauscher. He was predeceased by his granddaughter, Camille Vingle, brothers Gerhard, Ervin, and Heinrich Tauscher, sister Helga Wente, and parents, Rudolph and Marlena Tauscher. 

Rolf was born February 4, 1936, in Breklum, Germany, the fourth of seven children born to Lutheran missionaries Rudolph and Marlena Tauscher.  He grew up in the mission fields of India where his father served to teach Christianity and western civilization practices to the people of South Eastern India.  His mother died in 1940 shortly after he turned 4 years old.  During World War II, his family was placed in an internment camp called Satara where they lived in barracks like buildings with other German families.  After the war, he attended an American run international boarding school called Kodaikanal, in South India. He enjoyed playing soccer, hiking and exploring the jungles of India. While at this school, he saw several western movies and decided that he would move to America so he could have a farm.  

He graduated in 1954 and at the age of 18 moved to America.  His father had remarried an American nurse and her family, the Jungerman’s, sponsored him. He attended Thiel College in Pennsylvania and worked numerous jobs to help pay for tuition.

When he was 19, a couple of his friends took him fishing to Conneaut Lake.  They had dinner at a place called the Cow Shed and when they were leaving, they saw three ladies going in so they decided they’d better stay for dessert. That’s where he says he caught his Big Mouth Bass, Janet,and after that, he never went fishing again.  He and Janet were married on May 17th, 1958.

He joined the US Army in 1958 where he was a paratrooper with the 101st“Screaming Eagles” Airborne Division out of Fort Campbell, KY.  He was stationed in Germany and received his US citizenship by serving in the military.  He was extremely proud to be an American and deeply loved this country. When he left the military, he used the GI bill to finish his education at the University of Pittsburg where he graduated in 1963 with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Chemistry.  

In June of 1963, Rolf and Janet welcomed their first child Kurt and a year later their second child Karin.

After graduation, he worked at J&L Steel in Aliquippa, Pennsylvania.  In 1967, he was offered a job with Union Carbide at their Institute West Virginia plant working as a Chemist in the Quality Assurance department of the Agricultural Chemical business.  He worked there for 27 years until he retired in 1994 at the age of 58.

He raised his family in Nitro, West Virginia.  He was an avid golfer and a member of Sleepy Hollow Country Club for a number of years.  He enjoyed taking his dogs and family for walks in the woods. 

His dream, when he came to America, was to own a farm.  In 1987, he accomplished that dream by purchasing a 60-acre farm on top of a mountain in Red House, West Virginia.  For the next 31 years he lived his dream transforming the house and property into a beautiful park like setting.  

In 2018, he and his wife Janet moved to Brimfield, Ohio to live with their son Kurt and his wife Sherry.  He developed a terminal condition in March of 2022 and was under Hospice Care until he passed away on April 6.

He loved nature and the outdoors because that’s where he saw the beauty of God’s creations. This inspired his faith in God and stimulated his conviction that heaven is going to be a beautiful place. 

Visitation will be held from 4 to 6 on Friday, April 15th at Bissler & Sons Funeral Home, 628 West Main Street, Kent, OH 44240.  He will be laid to rest near his granddaughter, Camille, at Tyler Mountain Memory Gardens in Cross Lanes, WV. 

The family would like to thank Tallmadge Health and Rehab Center, Cleveland Clinic Hospice Care Team and At Home Healthcare for providing Rolf the needed support and care.

Services in care of Bissler & Sons Funeral Home and Crematory, 628 W Main St, Kent, Ohio 44240.