Joseph A. Schwartz

Joseph “Joe” Allen Schwartz loved to build. He came by it naturally as the oldest son of Joe H. and Frances L. (Coblentz) Schwartz. He was soon followed by five more siblings, Albert James “Jim” Schwartz, Mary Ann (Schwartz) Dynes, Michael Schwartz, Myron Schwartz and Herb Schwartz. This full house loved big family gatherings, Southern Gospel music and the Lord.
He built or worked on many of the buildings in and around his hometown of Berne. After graduating from South Adams High School, he first traveled throughout the state working on various construction projects for Rainbow Construction and then worked at the Wayne Reusser Lumberyard in Berne. In 1977, he and his father founded Joe H. Construction. He eventually bought the company outright from his father, and throughout the life of the company, he built homes, factories and even parts of Swiss Village. He was also quick to help others in need, doing small home repairs for those less fortunate and “forgetting” to send an invoice.
He built a family with the love of his life, Janell Schwartz. They began dating in May 1976, and he proposed at midnight on New Year’s Day in 1977 as the church bells rang in the new year. They were married in June 1977. Their first son, Joel, was born three years later, followed by Jared, Joshua and Jay. The four Schwartz boys kept their parents busy with their many activities. Later, Joel married Jessica Muterspaugh, and they had Micah, Zachary and Eleanor; Joshua married Stacy Matteson, and they had Cambria, Emerson, Brylee and Lucy; Jay married Emily Hall, and they had Clara, Annabelle and Noelle. Altogether, this quiet man and his beloved Janell made their own full house with four sons, three daughters-in-law and 10 grandchildren. He loved having his family visit and usually ended each visit with “I love you! Come back soon!”
He loved Christ and served Him throughout his community. For many years, he served as a Sunday school teacher, junior quizzing coach, board trustee and deacon at First Missionary Church in Berne. In his later years, he taught Sunday school at the First Mennonite Church and helped with remodeling the church offices there. A quiet man, he rose every morning before the sun to read the newspaper, eat his toast and study his Bible. He could also be frequently found listening to music — especially Southern Gospel male quartets.
He went home to heaven Sunday, Dec. 3, 2023, at the age of 67. His family misses him deeply and yet rejoices in his homecoming. A music-filled celebration of life service will be held Friday, Dec. 8 at 10:30 a.m. at the First Mennonite Church, 566 W. Main St., Berne. Visitation will be held Thursday, Dec. 7 from 3-8 p.m. at First Mennonite Church in Berne and one hour before the funeral service on Friday.
Memorials are requested in his memory to the Berne Public Library children’s area, which he helped build or Forgotten Children Worldwide at www.forgottenchildren.org, which he helped support.
Arrangements provided by Zwick & Jahn Funeral Homes, Yager-Kirchhofer Chapel in Berne. To sign the online guest book, visit www.zwickjahn.com.