Josephine Weiher

The memorial service celebrating the life of Josephine Weiher will be held at 11:00a.m. on Friday, March 21, at St. John Lutheran Church in Wadena with Pastor Stephen Meltzer presiding. Family and friends may gather at the church on Friday from 9:30a.m. until the time of the service. Burial will be in Wadena Cemetery, Wadena, MN.
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To view the service go to the Schuller Family Funeral Homes & Cremation Services Facebook or YouTube page.
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Josephine "Jo" Ann Lehmkuhl Weiher packed a lot of life and love into her nearly 93 years. Born in Deer Creek, MN to Harold and Frieda (Oldenburg) Lehmkuhl, she lived almost the entirety of her life in this area.
The name Josephine means "God will increase." After graduating Wadena High School in 1950, she married Darrel Weiher. Together they raised 8 children, and were married for 62 years. Their extended family now numbers 102, with more on the way.
We wonder how many loaves of bread or cakes Jo made over the years, or how many meals of her famous BBQ ribs or unique brand of meatballs, but the number is less important than what that food represents-caring for people. She always cared for people. She cared for her parents, her husband and kids, grandkids, great grands, and even great-great grandchildren! She cared for kids at school as a lunch lady, and later as a volunteer classroom Grandma. She was always feeding people. Neighbors, friends, and family knew they'd get a delicious meal or treat at her home. She had a skill for cooking comfort food.
Always busy, Jo had boundless energy throughout her life. Surely you must if you have 8 children. If that wasn't enough work, she also held multiple jobs at the same time for most of her life. When her children were young, she made extra money by making and selling baked goods every Saturday. When her kids were older, she worked at the school in the morning, the church in the afternoon, and did the bookkeeping and payroll for Darrel's business. She owned DJ Church Supply store and gardened, growing everything you could imagine in a giant garden. In Jo's "free" time, she sewed, crocheted and embroidered. She simply was not someone who just sat around she was always doing something.
Darrel used to joke that she'd talk to anyone, anywhere, all day long. It's true. She never met a stranger. If you ever travelled with her, you know that she would strike up a conversation with anyone by saying "I travelled a long way to be here today." They would ask where she was from, and a whole conversation would begin. She was quick witted and funny, and if she didn't know your name, you were probably called "hon". She really had a great gift for communication.
Her faith was a force in her life like none other. Life provided challenges over the years that could have tested her faith, but she never wavered. Her church family was so important to her, and she dutifully and willingly gave her money, time and talents to St. John Lutheran Church as Secretary for 24 years, participating in service groups, LWML, Ladies Guild and more. Whenever she was asked to help, she always helped.
This busy, beautiful, funny lady was a force in all of our lives. She taught us directly and indirectly for all of her 92 years, and we are all better people because of it. For the last several years she often used the phrase "time goes by too fast." Maybe this was her final lesson to us. Reflecting on how she lived her life, you easily saw that experiences and time spent with loved ones was more important than things ever could be. So as her family, we will take her special recipes, her tradition of hand-made gifts, her love of caring for others, the gift of gab, the sense of humor and her strong faith and everything else she gave us and we will pass it on. Because time does indeed go by too fast, so enjoy the time you have.
Josephine passed away surrounded by her family at Astera Health in Wadena, MN, on March 17, 2025. Preceding Jo in death were her husband Darrel; parents Harold and Frieda; son Kevin; sister Alice Ross; brothers-in-law Norman Sampson and Lyle Ross, son-in-law Jerry Hannah, and parents-in-law, Henry and Grace Weiher.
Surviving Josephine are her children, Dwayne (Joyce) of Bemidji, Mary (Jerry) Hannah of Bemidji, Michael (Lela) of Chapel Hill, NC, Deb (Terry) Denny of Sebeka, Randy (Berni) of Sauk Rapids, Jeff (Tammy) of Farmington, and Karen (Dirk) Thompson of Lee's Summit, MO; 19 grandchildren, 45 great-grandchildren, & 7 great-great-grandchildren; sister Adeline Sampson; along with many extended family and friends.
Honorary urn bearers are all her grandchildren: Jeanie (Weiher) Hall, Jodi (Weiher) Maxwell, Amy (Weiher) Erickson, Michael Weiher, Miranda (Weiher) Buchan, Eric Peterson, Junell (Weiher) Koberlien, Brandon Denny, Matthew Denny, Kelly (Weiher) Estrada, Keith Weiher, Danielle Clauer, Mychaela Burggraff, Kimberly (Weiher) Knight, Bethany (Weiher) Winslow, Piper Thompson, Pacey Thompson, Peri Thompson, and Gabby Weiher.
Memorials received in Josephine's name will be donated to the Foster Grandparents Program in Wadena, MN.