Dean Robert Schell

Dean Robert Schell was born in Mansfield Ohio on May 22nd,1950, to Robert Jay Schell and Margaret Schell nee Riddlebaugh, as there was no hospital in their home town of Bucyrus. His family, which included his much older sister Carole, lived in Bucyrus Ohio (home of the Bratwurst Festival) for the majority of his childhood (except for a brief stint when the family moved to Arizona between his ages of two and four), where in 1968 he graduated second in his high-school class, and was awarded a full scholarship to The Ohio State University. While working on his bachelor's degree he was active in campus ministry programs.

In the spring of 1981 Dean and Nancy welcomed Zachary Dean, the first of three enthusiastic boys, into their family. Andrew Jay and Peter Joseph followed within a few years. Sadly, the fourth brother, Samuel Robert, died in infancy due to severely premature birth; yet still Dean was overjoyed to be a father, and always imparted his humor and love of life's adventures to his sons. He was also the proud grandfather of Alison Rose and Samuel Zachary, and quite pleased that in Samuel Zachary his family’s tradition of giving the first born son the father’s first name for a middle name was continued.

He was an avid sailor, and owned several one- to four-person sailboats throughout the years. His firearms collection was quite extensive, and included many strange and obscure pistols and long guns. He also loved to read, and frequently read multiple books at the same time. He had a quirky sense of humor, and could make anyone laugh (or elicit a hard groan) with his wealth of bad dad jokes, as well as long-winded jokes with wonderfully awful punchlines. He was also very active in his sons’ Boy Scout troops, with responsibilities as involved as Scout Master, and as humble as guiding his boys in making well-crafted pinewood derby cars. He was well versed in history, especially WWII and the Civil War. Along with his friends Hutch, Dave, and others, he was a charter member of the Arlington Illuminati, as they called their gang. He greatly enjoyed Diet Coke, and would drink it by the case. While Wendy’s was his favorite go-to meal, he savored a wide variety of cuisines, as long as it wasn’t too messy and he didn’t have to “fight with his food”. Though he professed to dislike pets, he had several loving canine companions throughout the years, with Old Dan being the first family dog for his children, and Purdy the pitbull being his favorite furry daughter. While he spent the majority of his adult life as a resident of Upper Arlington, he found a wonderful community of friendly and helpful neighbors at Enchanted Acres in Obetz that he enjoyed in his twilight years.

Dean was blessed with passing peacefully in his home on July 17th, 2026. He is survived by his wife Nancy Jean, sons Zach, AJ, and Peter, and grandchildren Alison and Sam. 

A Memorial Gathering will be held from 1pm until the time of Memorial Service at 2pm on August 9th, 2026 at Newcomer, SW Chapel, 3393 Broadway, Grove City, OH.