Carmen C. Lanum, 71, of Hicksville, Ohio, passed away Wednesday, December 7, 2022, surrounded by her loving family. Carmen was born April 17, 1951, in Hicksville, Ohio, daughter of the late Floyd G. and Carmen C. (Morales) Ortiz. She attended St. Joe High School, Butler, Indiana. Carmen married Richard J. Lanum on September 27, 1969, in Hicksville, Ohio, and he preceded her in death on December 26, 1973. Carmen then married Pablo Garcia on September 13, 1975, and that marriage ended in divorce. During her working years, she was a nurses aide at the former Fountain Manor Nursing Home in Hicksville, and before that, a field laborer for Sechler’s Pickles. Carmen was a member of St. Michael Catholic Church, Hicksville. In her free time, she enjoyed flower and vegetable gardening, shopping at the Bargain Box, baking apple pies and peach cobbler from scratch, and making homemade tortillas. Carmen will be remembered for the devotion and love that she had for her family.
Carmen is survived by her six children, Cindy Lanum of Hicksville, Michael (Maria) Lanum of Hicksville, Althea (Carol Apostolos) Lanum of Columbia City, Indiana, Beatriz (Jorge Vasquez) Garcia of Fort Wayne, Indiana, Reynaldo (Jennifer) Garcia of Fort Wayne, Indiana, and Carmen (Victor) Vasquez of Hicksville; former spouse, Pablo Garcia of Apatzigan, Mexico; 15 grandchildren; seven great-grandchildren; and three sisters, Gloria Jasso of Antwerp, Hope Castillo of Hicksville, and Juanita Gonzalez of Fort Pierce, Florida. Carmen was preceded in death by her parents; husband, Richard; one daughter, Guadalupe Garcia; two infant granddaughters, Leticia Lanum and Alexandria Lanum; three brothers, John Ortiz, Paul Ortiz, and Gilbert Ortiz; and seven sisters, Christina Contreras, Rosie Fuentes, Dorothy Chew, Mary Razo, Margaret Nieto, Josephine Navarro, and Arabella Sanchez.
Visitation for Carmen C. Lanum will be held on Tuesday, December 13, 2022, from 2:00 – 6:30 P.M. at Oberlin-Turnbull Funeral Home, 706 North Main Street, Hicksville, where recitation of the Rosary will begin at 6:30 P.M. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 10:00 A.M. on Wednesday, December 14, 2022, at St. Michael Catholic Church, Hicksville, with Father Daniel Borgelt officiating. Interment will follow in Forest Home Cemetery, Hicksville.
Memorial contributions can be directed to the Defiance County Senior Center – Hicksville Office, 708 East High Street, Hicksville, Ohio 43526.