The New Philadelphia resident died Monday, March 8, in Cleveland Clinic Union Hospital in Dover.
Retired Tuscarawas County Court of Common Pleas Judge Roger Lile had Zion as his English teacher his sophomore year.
“He’d also talk about history, so he provided a good foundation for when I went to college,” said Lile, who now resides in Dover.
“He was always fun to be around and just a pleasant, easy-going person,” Lile said. “I think that he really lived a long time because he didn’t get excited and upset about something he couldn’t take care of doing. He was great as one of our three county commissioners we worked with during the annual budget process, and later the renovations to the courthouse. It really made much nicer conditions for the jury. My courtroom had been the law library for years before being converted into Courtroom No. 2.”