Mechanicsburg, PA - Alice Grace Hostetter Zercher, 100, Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, passed away on Easter Sunday, April 5, carried into God's presence by the prayers and songs of her family.

Born on Oct. 8, 1925, in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, Alice Grace was the daughter of Henry and Beula (Hess) Hostetter.

She is survived by four sons, Gene (Paula Stump, deceased), Nappanee; Richard (Catherine Chodorow), Lafayette, California; Charles (Laura Iriana), Durham, New Hampshire; and David (Valerie Weaver), Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania; by grandchildren, Charlie (Trischa Speicher), Amy, Ben, Jacob, Jordan (Hunter Kent), Samuel (Taylor Flor), Isaiah, and Henry; and great-grandchildren, Jack, Ava, and Will.

She was preceded in death by her husband, John; and by her young son, Daryl.

Alice Grace grew up as an only child on the Hostetter farm near Washington Boro, Lancaster County. She helped with the chickens and the garden, played with her many beloved cousins, and sang in choirs and small groups. Her love of music continued throughout her life.

She was baptized in the Conestoga Creek at age twelve; and she enjoyed participating in church activities and youth conferences.

Alice Grace graduated from high school in Millersville at age sixteen, attended Messiah Junior College for two years, earned a bachelor's degree from Goshen (Indiana) College, and then a master's degree from Temple University.

In the summer of 1948, Alice Grace met John Zercher through their work on a Messiah College alumni committee; and they were married at Manor Brethren in Christ Church in 1950.

In the 1940s, she helped to manage the family farm and ran the Messiah dining room.

In the 1950s, she served as a pastor's wife, became the mother to five boys, and moved to Nappanee, Indiana, when John became manager of Evangel Press.

Once her sons were in school, she became a middle school home economics teacher, first at Whiteman Junior High School in Goshen and then at Nappanee Middle School.

Widowed in 1979, Alice Grace continued to teach and also to serve in her congregation, Nappanee Brethren in Christ Church. In retirement, much of her work centered around older adult ministries.

Alice Grace moved to Messiah Lifeways in 2009, where she taught Sunday school, enjoyed meals with friends, and cared for her nearby grandchildren.

Wherever she lived, Alice Grace was an active lay leader, an organizer par excellence, and a friend to many.

She was unfailingly generous, hosting countless visitors around her dining table, many who just happened to show up for church on a Sunday morning.

For a time, her basement rec room became an apartment for those in need of a place to stay for an extended period.

Alice Grace's life was shaped by the rhythms and tasks of church and community. Often, when family would call, she had just gotten home from visiting someone, leading a church function, or attending a grandchild's ballgame or concert.

She will be remembered as a woman of deep commitment to Christ, filled with wisdom, a strong sense of duty, and a profound love for her family.

She loved a good game of dominoes, more for the conversation than for the competition.

A Celebration of Life service will be held in the chapel at Messiah Lifeways, 100 Mt. Allen Drive, Mechanicsburg, on Sunday, May 3, at 3:00 p.m., with visitation starting at 2:00 p.m. and a meal to follow.

Her remains will be interred at the Union Center Cemetery in Nappanee, with a memorial service at the Nappanee Brethren in Christ Church on Sunday, June 14, at 2:00 p.m.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in her memory to the John E. and Alice G. Zercher Endowed Scholarship at Messiah University, One University Avenue, Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania 17055; or to Mennonite Central Committee, P.O. Box 500, Akron, Pennsylvania 17501.