Wendi Jean Schleppenbach, 44, of Lafayette, went home to the Lord on Monday, November 28, surrounded by her loving family and the medical staff who worked so hard to help her battle her illness.

Wendi was born in Quincy, Illinois, and later moved to Springfield, Missouri.  She attended school in Quincy and St. Louis, returning to Quincy to study Psychology at Quincy University. That's where she met David Schleppenbach. They swept each other off their feet and fell in love, knowing they had each found their true soulmate. David and Wendi married in 1992. Their joyful adoration and faithful unity held strong through all the following years, as their treasured family grew and matured. The family moved to West Lafayette in 1994 and remain part of the Greater Lafayette community to this day.

Throughout her life, Wendi unflinchingly faced and overcame numerous challenges to her health, through her steadfast faith and unshakeable strength of will. Blind from birth, she learned to read Braille and live independently at a young age. Her excellent language skills facilitated her employment as a Braille editor and proofreader, working on textbooks and educational materials for the next generation of blind scholars. At home, she cared for her children, saw to their schooling, and maintained a household, all without the use of a sense that most people take for granted.

Wendi was wholeheartedly a servant of God, expressing her faith both inwardly, with unfaltering trust in the path set before her, and outwardly, in the constant kindness, compassion, and generosity she showed to those around her.

Wendi enjoyed cooking, reading, religious studies, and listening to the radio, but her greatest love and delight came from her family. Wendi was a devoted and protective mother, raising 15 children in a nurturing, studious, and Godly home. An active voice in the homeschooling community, Wendi regularly attended educational conferences to discover new teaching tools and obtain the best possible education and counsel for her children.

Wendi was preceded in death by her maternal grandmother Marge Crabtree, with whom she shared a close bond. She leaves to cherish her memory her husband, David, 44, and their children: Amy, 24; Dawn (Joshua Hufford), 23; David (Svea Nelson), 21; Sara (Caleb Jones), 20; Alia, 18; Eden, 17; Jane, 15; Jena, 15; Holi, 14; Hope, 13; Seth, 11; Noah, 8; Luke, 5; Faith, 3; Mark, 7 months. Wendi is also survived by her father, Sam Hively, mother, Christine Foster, sisters, Vanessa Hively and Anna Barker, half-sister, Rachel Foster Neal, and half-brother, Jess Foster.

Visitation will be Sunday, December 4 from 5-8 PM, at Soller-Baker Funeral Home, 400 Twyckenham Blvd, Lafayette. Services are Monday, December 5 at 1 PM, at St. Lawrence Catholic Church, Lafayette. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made online at www.gofundme.com/30tqotk