Anita Osborn

Anita Eddingfield Osborn, 86 of Greenwood, passed away June 18, 2026 at Franciscan Hospice House. Anita was born in Durham, Connecticut to Rev. Alfred L. and Mrs. Mildred Williams Eddingfield. Her father was doing a graduate study at Yale University while pastoring a church in Durham. He then accepted a pastorate in Oyster Bay, Long Island, New York, where Anita‘s only sibling Marilyn was born.

Although the family greatly enjoyed all the cultural opportunities and the closeness of the ocean, her father‘s mother: Anita‘s grandmother was going blind. The family moved back to Indiana taking the pastorate at Wabash Street Methodist Church in Wabash and several years later at the Columbia city Methodist Church. Then tragedy struck as Rev. Eddingfield suffered an aneurysm and died.

Anita‘s mother bravely faced, raising Anita (15) and Marilyn (11) on her own. She took a position as assistant to the Pastor and church secretary at the Warsaw Methodist Church.

Anita was an outstanding student and a very talented young woman at Warsaw High School. She was the accompanist for the high school choir, had a lead role in the senior play, won the state championship in extemporary speaking and graduated as the salutatorian of her class.

She began her college years at Depaul University and completed her B.A. in philosophy and religion, as well as English and speech at Manchester University.

Anita taught at Warsaw high school for several years before leaving to earn her master’s degree at Ball State University. She then taught for many years at New Haven high school.

During those years Anita married Stephen E Osborn, a marriage dstined to last for 48 years. They lived in Fort Wayne both working as Steve finished a third college degree. Anita had been teaching part-time at IU and Purdue in Fort Wayne as well as her job at New Haven. She desired to move to full-time college teaching which necessitated a doctoral degree.

With Steve’s blessing, she left for a two-year program at the university of Illinois at Champaign, majoring in curriculum and administration. She then took a position as Director of teacher, education, assistant professor, and Indiana teacher certification officer at Franklin College.

The college had not been able to achieve NCATE accreditation. So, she began to make changes in the program. With the help of fellow professor Linda Snyder, they worked tirelessly and succeeded in getting NCATE accreditation with a number of accommodations.

However, the most meaningful part of her work was times with the students to develop them into competent caring teachers. In 1996, Anita was diagnosed with cancer. Surgery followed by weeks of radiation took a terrible toll. Unable to work, she did what she could volunteering at the church’s food pantry, and Johnson County Humane Society until even that became too much.

Anita was a voracious reader, loved crossword puzzles, and sudoku, watched PBS programs, and read the entire Indianapolis Star every day.

She loved her pets of what she had many, mostly cats. She had a special place in her heart for orange tiger cats. She hoped to be reunited with her pets at the rainbow bridge. She and Steve adopted and rescued all their cats and donated to all sorts of animal and nature causes.

Both Steve and Anita were devout Christians, who supported many religious charities. Anita was one of the founding members of a new Methodist Church covenant. Anita served as lay leader, chair of the administrative board, member of the building committee and director of adult education. Anita was proceeded in death by her parents, her first husband, her stepchildren, Roger and Dianne, and her brother-in-law Larry.

Survivors include her beloved husband, Steve, who was such a help to her with her loss of mobility; her step children, Ladell and Kim, her dear sister, Marilyn, and her children, Linda, Scott and Kevin and their families, her brother-in-law, Stan Osborne and his wife Linda with their children, Dion and Missy and their families, several cousins and special friends.

Family and friends will gather to celebrate the life of Anita Eddingfield Osborn on Thursday, June 25, 2026, from 3:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m. at Wilson St. Pierre Funeral Service & Crematory, 481 W. Main Street, Greenwood. A funeral service will be held at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday, June 27 at Titus Funeral Home, 2000 Sheridan Street, Warsaw, IN 46580, followed by burial at Oakwood Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers donations would be appreciated to Project Mercy, 7011 Ardmore Ave., Fort Wayne, IN 46804 or Doctors Without Borders, 40 Rector St. 16th floor New York, New York, 10006.