Larry Dean Sander

Larry Dean Sander, age 75, Orrville, OH passed away April 24 at Danbury Senior Living, Wooster, OH. Larry was born in Fargo, ND March 24, 1948, to Orville E. and Adele B. (Olson) Sander. He attended school in Fargo and Bismarck, ND and graduated in 1966 from Mitchell High School in Mitchell, South Dakota. He graduated from the University of North Dakota with a B.S. and Phi Beta Kappa honors.
He married Margaret Jean Parnell in Hamilton, ND on June 13, 1970. He graduated from Case Western Reserve Medical School in Cleveland, OH in 1974. After finishing a three-year family practice residency at Hunterdon Medical Center, Flemington, NJ, he and Margaret moved to Orrville.
Larry Sander's service to the Orrville community began before he even moved to Orrville. While in medical school at Case Western Reserve University, he participated in a program that sent students to family doctor's offices to work with them and observe. He was sent to Dr. Robert E. Reiheld's office that was then over the Seifreid Drugstore at the corner of Main and Market St. After graduation Larry and Dr. Rob G. Reiheld founded Dunlap Family Physicians in September 1977.
Larry continued to practice there for 35 years, retiring in 2012. He was a member of the American Academy of Family Physicians and dedicated his life to serving his patients. He served on the board of Dunlap Memorial Hospital. He also served on medical staff committees for the hospital. He was president of the medical staff and made the annual report unique by presenting the report in verse. He volunteered at the Viola Startzman Clinic monthly for decades. He served on the Board of Trustees there until 2017.
While his children were on the Orrville swim team, he was a co-chair of the parents' committee and earned certification as a swim judge. Larry was an avid sports fan of the University of North Dakota, especially the hockey team that was formerly named The Fighting Sioux. He cheered for every Orrville Red Rider as well. He enjoyed playing harmonica, bridge, growing bonsai, collecting coins, and attending plays and musicals.
Survivors include his wife, Margaret; son, Jeremy Sander, Lewisville, TX; daughter Melanie and Steven Fisher, Orrville, OH; brother, Jerry and Holly Sander, Fitchburg, WI. Grandchildren, Avianna and Kai Fisher, Orrville, OH and Bentley Fisher, Carrollton, OH. He was preceded in death by his parents; father-in-law Donald Parnell and mother-in-law Ruth Parnell; brother-in-law Ray Parnell; and daughter-in-law Amber Sander.
Friends may call on Friday, April 28, 2023, at Auble Funeral Home, 512 East Oak Street, Orrville, from 5:00 pm to 7:00 pm.
Memorial services will be held at 11:00 am on Saturday, at Trinity United Methodist Church, 1556 Rex Drive, Orrville, with Pastor Dennis O. Rinehart officiating and live streamed at https://www.facebook.com/aublefuneralhome. Burial of ashes will take place at the Crown Hill Cemetery in Orrville.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Viola Statzman Clinic, 1874 Cleveland Road, Wooster, OH 44691, startzmanclinic.org or Alzheimer's Association, 225 N. Michigan Avenue, Floor 17, Chicago, IL 60601, www.alz.org.