About Us

A Tradition of Service

The patriarch of the Koch family, David Hammond Koch, Jr. was born in 1918 in Canton, Ohio.  As a teenager in Waynesburg, Ohio, he began work at the funeral home across the street from his home.  This after-school job became the beginning of a lifelong commitment to funeral service.  After graduating from high school, David went on to gain his formal training as a funeral director and embalmer through The Cleveland College of Embalming in Cleveland, Ohio.  Following his college graduation, he completed his apprenticeship training and worked for a funeral home in Kent, Ohio.  During this time, World War II had erupted and David answered the call to serve his country as member of the United States Army.  David served through the end of the war as a medic with 76th General Hospital throughout the European Theatre.  He was awarded three Bronze Stars and The Purple Heart for his services.

Following WWII, David returned to Northeast Ohio, where he was associated with funeral homes in Cleveland, Kent, Canton, and Ravenna.  While working at a funeral home in Ravenna, Ohio in the 1940's, he would meet Sarah Ferrell, who was living and working at the same funeral home while attending college at Kent State University.  She would eventually become his wife and bring their family to her hometown, the small town of Freeport, Ohio.  There, they would purchase the former McCoy Funeral Home and establish the very first Koch Funeral Home in 1965.  David and Sarah served together in this location for 15 years, until David's death in 1980.

In continuing with the family tradition, David and Sarah's eldest son and his wife, John and Donna K. Koch, would become a second generation of funeral directors.  In 1983, they purchased the Koch Funeral Home in Freeport and continue to serve at that location today.

The youngest son of David and Sarah, Asher "Pete" and his wife, Sheila Koch would join the family business by expanding to a location of their own in Scio, Ohio in 1995.

Mitchell Koch, the youngest grandson of David and Sarah, has again expanded the family business.  Mitchell, along with his siblings, Angela Smith and Jacob & Amanda Koch, comprise the third generation of funeral directors in the Koch family.  This most recent expansion came with the purchase of the former Gowins Funeral Home in Gnadenhutten in 2012, creating Koch Funeral Home LLC of Gnadenhutten.  Since the purchase, the original site has undergone extensive renovation and expansion, creating a beautiful, state of the art facility.  The interior phase of these renovations is nearly complete and a grand opening is planned for later this year.  While the facility remains in the renovation phase, we remain available to serve you and your family throughout this process.

This addition comes at over 50 years of Koch Funeral Home service and over 80 years history of funeral service within the Koch family.  We are proud to share our traditions of compassion, hard work, and dedication to excellence with your family in your time of need.

Continuing the Tradition Today

At Koch Funeral Home, we strive to provide options to allow our families to create a memorable event.  We want to exceed our families' expectations during one of life's most difficult times. 

Our commitment to offer nothing but the very best is reflected in the service we provide and the time we are willing to give to the families that we serve.  We exist because we want to be an asset to this community.  We are grateful to those who have chosen to put their trust in us by allowing us to handle funeral arrangements for their loved one.  We will always strive to do the best we can to keep our services and facilities updated, and to offer merchandise that follows with the most current funeral industry trends. 

Please contact the funeral home to address any questions you may have.  We are always available to assist you.