Melvin (Mel) Vance age 89, of rural Waynetown, passed away peacefully in his home surrounded by family at 1:40 AM Saturday, February 28, 2026. He was the son of Charles Wesley Vance SR. and Nora Bigler Vance. He was born and raised in Palmyra Indiana, a small town in rural Harrison County. His elementary education was in a two room school house in Palmyra for grades 1-6 that had no indoor plumbing or central heat. In 1955 he graduated from Morgan Township high school in a class of 26 students. In 1960 he received a B.S. degree in Agriculture and Biology from Purdue. He often joked that he only made the Dean’s list once while at Purdue and that was the result of skipping too many classes in a boring Educational Psychology class. In 1967 he earned an M.A. degree from the University of Kentucky by way of a National Defense Education Act scholarship that included full tuition plus a living stipend. In 1960 he began his teaching career in Agriculture and Biology at Waynetown High School. It was there that he met Lois Larew, the best girl of his life. They were married in 1963 and were committed for 62 years of marriage and remained in the Waynetown community. Mel often remarked that saying “I Do” was one of the best decisions of his life.

After school consolidation in 1970 he continued teaching at North Montgomery High School. After retirement from North Montgomery in 1992 he served as a part time Adjunct Instructor in Environmental Science at Indiana Wesleyan University and assisted Dr. Jerry Peters at Purdue in the development of the Indiana Streams and Rivers curriculum. During this time he was a guest lecturer for the Master Gardener program sponsored by the Montgomery County Extension Service and conducted numerous seminars in Horticulture and Natural Resources across West Central Indiana. His primary activity in retirement was the expansion of a small Christmas tree farm that eventually numbered nearly 7,000 trees.

As co-advisor of the North Montgomery FFA the chapter won numerous awards at the state and national level in judging and leadership activities. He coached the first place team in the state soil judging contest in 1982 and in 1983 the same team was the Reserve Champion in the International Land Judging contest held in Oklahoma. During his career at North Montgomery the chapter had six state FFA officers. In 1983 he was named the Indiana Young Farmer Association advisor of the year and 1991 he was recognized by the National FFA Association as the Indiana Agriscience teacher of the year for creativity in developing biotechnology applicable to the classroom. In 2010 he was honored by the Purdue Agricultural Alumni Association with a “Certificate of Distinction” for outstanding service to Agriculture.

Mel was a Benefactor Life member of the National Rifle Association and is listed in the NRA Patriot Hall of Fame and was a certified hunter safety instructor. He served two terms as Wayne Township trustee and was a certified residential property tax assessor and served for over twenty years on the Montgomery County Property Tax Assessment Board of Appeals. He was the author of two books on theology; THE BLACKNESS OF UTTER DARKNES and the UPSIDE DOWN GOSPEL BIBLE STUDY. Too busy with the shooting sports, fishing and gardening he never had time for a smart phone.

Mel’s lifelong faith had him involved in the Gideon’s ministry, leading Bible studies, teaching Sunday school and involvement in local churches throughout his life.

Mel is survived by his wife Lois, daughter Angela (Todd) Benson, grandsons, Garrett, Ethan and Samuel, granddaughter Chelsey (Zachary) Holm and 5 great grandchildren.; son Brent (Dan) VanTice, grandsons Xander and Walker; daughter Cherise Hall, grandsons Dylan (Faye), and David as well as several nieces and nephews.

Visitation hours are 4:00 – 8:00 PM Friday, March 6, 2026 at the First United Methodist Church, 212 E Wabash Ave, Crawfordsville, IN. Funeral Services will be held at the church 10:30 A.M. Saturday, March 7, 2026 with Pastor Brian Campbell officiating. The family prefers in lieu of flowers, donations may be made to FISH Food pantry, through the Montgomery County Community Foundation. Envelopes will be available at the services or Online here.

Family and Friends Funeral Home of Wingate is assisting the Vance family. Visit us online at www.familyandfriendsfh.com to sign the guest book or share a condolence.