Constance Marie "Connie" Guth

1968 - 2018

(News Story) Constance "Connie" Marie Guth, a Navarre Elementary School teacher and a mother of three, died Friday in Hospice of Northwest Ohio, South Detroit Avenue. She was 49.

She died of breast cancer, her husband of 26 years, Mark Guth, said.

Mrs. Guth taught first grade for about 20 years at Navarre Elementary School, her husband said.

"She was a caring, loving, amazing teacher," he said. "She would care about her students so much that she would embrace them as her own.

"For Christmas, she would buy every student a hat and a pair of gloves, because most of them walked to school," Mr. Guth said. "And she would buy school supplies out of her own pocket, if they needed them.

"She made such an impression on kids that when they continued to the second and the third grade, they would often give her a hug when they passed her in the hallway," he added.

Children and teachers at the school rallied for her after her breast cancer diagnosis in 2009 - her colleagues going as far as to throw her a flash mob at her house after one surgery and delivered food to her family.

Staff members also covered her classes when she needed to leave, donated their sick days when she used up hers, and raised about $4,700 to pay for a family trip to New York City. Bowsher High School students also raised more than $800 so Mrs. Guth had extra spending money while on her trip.

Mrs. Guth was born July 22, 1968, in Toledo to William and Susan Murphy and was the oldest of nine siblings.

"She was like a second mother to her brothers and sisters," Mr. Guth said. "When her mom was busy, she would help out, like change diapers or feed them. ... And when she become a mother herself, she got to be a good mom pretty quickly because of that experience."

Mrs. Guth graduated from Woodward High School in 1986. She later continued her education, graduating from the University of Toledo with a bachelor's degree in 1998 and with her master's degree from Heidelberg College in 2014 - both in education.

She married Mark Guth in 1992.

"She made a lot of sacrifices for us," her daughter, Emily Guth, said. "She always made sure we ate first, before she did, and that we would always get hot showers, and then she would get a cold shower if need be."

In her free time, Mrs. Guth enjoyed reading and spending time with her family members and her two dogs.

"She also liked to sit in the back yard, watching cardinals and other birds. And she would sing back to them," her husband said.

Mrs. Guth was a member of St. John the Baptist Catholic Church, Toledo, where she served as a Eucharistic minister and assisted with the Children's Liturgy of the Word.

Surviving are her husband, Mark Guth; daughters, Emily and Alyssa Guth; son, Bobby Guth; parents, William and Susan Murphy; brothers, William, Seamas, Sean and Timothy Murphy; and sisters, Erin Doran, Bridget Juhasz, Molly Sharp, and Megan Murphy.

Visitation will be at 2 p.m. Wednesday at David R. Jasin-Hoening Funeral Home, with recitation of the Rosary at 7 p.m.

Funeral services will begin at 10:30 a.m. Thursday in the funeral home and continue with the Mass at 11 a.m. in St. John the Baptist Catholic Church, 5153 N. Summit St.

The family suggests tributes to a charity of the donor's choice.

This is a news story written by Mike Sigov who can be contacted at sigov@theblade.com, 419-724-6089, or on Twitter @mikesigovblade.