Joanne (Tesch) Ortman of Munster, Ind., died Aug. 7, 2018, at the Dyer Care Center. She was 72.

Joanne Ruth Tesch was born in Osage, Iowa, on June 11, 1946, to Otto W. and Mildred Thorson Tesch. She grew up on the family farm west of St. Ansgar. She graduated from St. Ansgar high school and graduated with honors from Luther College in 1967 majoring in German. She went to graduate school at Indiana University in Bloomington where she received her Master's degree in German and worked toward another advanced degree. It was there that she met Gerald Ortman. They were married June 8, 1969, and moved to Munster, Indiana. They were later divorced.

Joanne taught a semester at a college, did some translating, and worked as a legal secretary in downtown Chicago. She was very interested in the art of origami and published a book Bent out of Shape. She enjoyed Scrabble and was a member of Mensa and VASA.

She became disabled with a stroke in 1998, and had been in a care center since 2015 when she has another medical emergency.

She is survived by her long time partner, Donald Hargraves of Munster; sisters, June (Tesch) Torrison ‘56 of LeRoy, Minn., Joyce (Tesch) Jaspers ’59 (Richard) of Greene, Iowa; nephews, Jeff and Jerry Torrison, Scott and Brian Jaspers; nieces Lori Debner and Jill Contreras; 22 cousins and many friends.

There was a Time of Remembrance on Aug. 26, 2018, at the First Lutheran Church Parish Hall in St. Ansgar.