Obituaries in Kansas Newspapers (arranged by city)
George W. Yoder
SCOTT CITY - George W. Yoder, 62, died Jan. 25, 2005, at Park Lane Nursing Home, Scott City.
He was born Jan. 12, 1943, at Garden City, the son of Walter and Velma Cesmat Yoder. A lifetime resident of Scott City, he was a truck driver for Korte Trucking Inc., Garden City.
On Sept. 24, 1983, he married
Sheryl L. Beeson at Shallow Water. She survives.
Other survivors include: a son, Rick, Wichita; seven daughters; Kimberly Mitchell, Kansas City, Lisa Back, Janelle Vallejo, Audra Addison, Staci Lee and JaKayla Vasquez, all of Garden City, and Tamara Yoder, Wichita; a brother, Harvey, Ogden; a sister, Becky Carr, Kansas; 15 grandchildren; and a great-grandchild.
He was preceded in death by his parents and a brother.
Memorial service will be at 2 p.m. Friday at Price & Sons Funeral Home, Scott City, with the Rev. Mike McGuire presiding.
Memorials may be sent to George W. Yoder Memorial Fund, in care of Price & Sons Funeral Home.
Galen L. Ely
BAZINE - Galen Lee Ely, 91, died Jan. 25, 2005, at Stevens County Hospital, Hugoton.
He was born Nov. 27, 1913, at Turon, the son of George and Byrd Moore Ely. He was a farmer and stockman until retirement, moving to Hutchinson in 1995.
He belonged to First Baptist Church, Bazine.
On May 14, 1938, he married
Dorothy Elizabeth Filbert. She died June 22, 2000.
Survivors include: two daughters, Judith Jordan, Hugoton, and Diana Schwartz, Hutchinson; five grandchildren; eight great-grandchildren; and three great-great-grandchildren.
He was preceded in death by a brother, Raymond; a grandson; and a great-great-granddaughter.
Funeral will be at 1 p.m. Saturday at First Baptist Church, Bazine, with the Rev. Mark Durham presiding. Visitation will be from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Thursday and Friday at Fitzgerald Funeral Home, Ness City, and from 10:30 to service time Saturday at the church. Burial will be in Bazine Cemetery.
Memorials may be sent to Pioneer Manor or to Stevens County Hospital, Hugoton, both in care of the funeral home.
Melda M. Spani
CHASE - Melda M. Spani, 97, died Nov. 29, 2004, at Medford, Ore.
She was born Aug. 21, 1907, at Chase, the daughter of Henry T. and Anna E. Robinson Link. A resident of Chase for 87 years, she was a homemaker.
She belonged to Shepherd of the Valley Church, Central Point, Ore.
On May 23, 1932, she married
Raleigh J. Spani at Chase. He died Aug. 14, 1966.
Survivors include: a son, Robert, Medford; seven grandchildren; 20 great-grandchildren; and a great-great-grandchild.
She was preceded in death by a son, Thomas; five brothers; three sisters; and a granddaughter.
Graveside service will be at 11:30 a.m. Saturday in Lyons Municipal Cemetery, Lyons, with Father Juan Garza presiding.
Memorials may be sent to Providence Hospice, 1660 East McAndrews, Medford, in care of Robert Spani, 2430 Viewpoint, Medford, OR 97504. Sillin Funeral Home, Lyons, is in charge of local arrangements.
Marjorie A. Book
SYLVIA - Marjorie Ann Book, 70, died Jan. 28, 2005, at Lynchburg General Hospital, Appomattox, Va.
She was born Aug. 20, 1934, at Huntsville, the daughter of Harold and Elda Moore Stiggins.
She married
Richard Duane Book. He died March 8, 2004.
Survivors include: a son, Rick, Appomattox, Va.; three daughters, Becky Henderson and Tammy Stanley, both of Appomattox, Va., and Trish Knoche, Stafford; her mother, Elda Anneler, Sylvia; 13 grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren.
She was preceded in death by a brother, Jackie Stiggins; and a granddaughter, Kristi Lynn Stanley.
Graveside service will be at 2 p.m. Thursday in Sylvia Cemetery, with the Rev. Harry Graves presiding.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be sent to the Sylvia Community Center, in care of Minnis Chapel, Stafford.
William McQueen
GARDEN CITY - William "Bill" McQueen, 77, died Jan. 29, 2005, at St. Catherine Hospital, Garden City.
He was born Sept. 23, 1927, at Garden City, the son of Claude F. and Effie Jane Moody McQueen Sr. A lifetime resident of Garden City, he worked various jobs, including farming, concrete work and auto mechanics.
He belonged to Continental Inn Coffee Club.
Survivors include: a brother, Donald C. McQueen, Alamosa, Colo.; and two sisters, Gladys Wagner, Garden City, and Mary Jane Martinez, San Jose, Calif.
He was preceded in death by two brothers, Claude F. McQueen Jr. and Warren H. McQueen; and a sister, Alice R. Schoor.
Memorial service will be held at a later date. Friends may call from 1 to 8 p.m. Tuesday at Price and Sons Funeral Home, Garden City. Burial will take place at a later date.
Memorials may be sent to the Bill McQueen Memorial Fund, in care of the funeral home.
Gale H. Taber
PRATT - Gale H. Taber, 78, died Jan. 31, 2005, at his home in Pratt.
He was born Feb. 11, 1926, at Belmont, the son of Homer L. and Mary Charlotte Gutherie Taber. He was a lumberman, managing lumber yards in Murdock, Dodge City and Pratt.
On Feb. 23, 1950, he married
Lee McKenzie at Kingman. She survives.
Other survivors include: a son, Michael, Eureka; a daughter, Marsha Taber, of the home; a brother, Homer L., Kingman; a sister, Orpha Hoffine, Wichita; and a grandson.
He was preceded in death by three brothers, John, Bydus and Ellis; and three sisters, Nota Hoffine, Thelma Neff and Halbertha Dern.
Funeral will be at 2 p.m. Thursday at Ayres-Calbeck Mortuary, Pratt, with the Rev. Jim Zimmerman presiding. Visitation will be from 5 to 8 p.m. Tuesday and from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Wednesday, all at the mortuary. Burial will be in Greenlawn Cemetery, Pratt.
Memorials may be sent to South Wind Hospice or Lemon Park Lights, both in care of the mortuary.
Arlyn G. Smith
TUCSON, Ariz. - Arlyn G. Smith, 78, died Jan. 28, 2005.
He was born Feb. 12, 1926, at Rozel, the son of Glee S. and Bernice Smith.
Survivors include: his wife; a son; twin daughters; a brother; five grandchildren; a stepgrandchild; and four great-grandchildren.
Graveside service will be at 2:30 p.m. Friday in LarnedCemeterywith military graveside rites. Family will receive visitors at 1 p.m. Friday at Beckwith Mortuary, Larned.
Richard R. Cranston
NESS CITY - Richard Ralph Cranston, 81, died Jan. 29, 2005, at Ness County Hospital, Ness City.
He was born March 16, 1923, in Ness County, the son of William and Tillie Zuelke Cranston. He was a graduate of Ness City High School. He was a farmer and stockman, specializing in Angus bulls and cattle.
He belonged to the United Methodist Church.
On May 17, 1942, he married
Betty Marie Schaben. She survives.
Other survivors include: three sons, Stan, Denver, Stacy, Yazoo City, Miss., and Kris, Wichita; a daughter, Janis Sculley, Osceoloa, Neb.; a brother, Dudley, Hutchinson; seven grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren.
He was preceded in death by two sisters, Irene Murdock and Ethel Eynard.
Funeral will be at 2 p.m. Wednesday at Fitzgerald Funeral Home, Ness City, with the Rev. Sue Talbot presiding. Friends may call from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Tuesday and from 9 a.m. until service time Wednesday at the funeral home. Burial will be in Ness City Cemetery.
Memorials may be sent the American Heart Association or the Ness County Hospital, both in care of the funeral home.
Helen L. Cougher
FOX LAKE, Ill. - Helen Lorraine Smith Cougher, 87, died Jan. 27, 2005.
She was born July 12, 1917, at Watson, Okla., the daughter of Leonidus and Myrtle Roundtree Smith. She was a resident of Fox Lake, Ill., for the past six months and a former resident of Hutchinson and El Paso, Texas. She was a homemaker, enjoying crafts, needle work, gardening, and was an avid reader.
Survivors include: two children, Toma Lee Blowers, Antioch, Ill., and David (Nicole) Cougher, Shelton, Wash.; five grandchildren, Jon (Mei Hsueh) Sorensen, Springfield, Ill., Erik (Valdeana) Sorensen, Kenosha, Wis., Anika (Scott) Nohava, Lindenhurst, Ill., and Hailey and Alex Cougher, both of Shelton, Wash.; and five great-grandchildren, Meng Fan Wu, and Twila, Nathan, Kara and Amanda Sorensen.
She was preceded in death by her husband, Thomas Eugene Cougher; two brothers, Richard and Albert Smith; and a son-in-law, William Blowers.
Private services were arranged by the K.K. Hamsher Funeral Home, 12 N. Pistakee Lake Rd., Fox Lake, Ill., (The Chapel on the Lake).
Memorials may be sent to American Cancer Society, in care of the funeral home.
Beryl L. Fisher
DENVER, Colo. - Beryl L. Fisher, 69, died Jan. 30, 2005, at Denver, Colo.
He was born July 2, 1935, at West Plains, Mo., the son of Roy and Edith Fisher. He was a former employee of Central Bank and Trust Company, Hutchinson, and manager of Best Western Motels, Iola, Kingman and Pratt. He also managed the Imperial 400 Motel, Hutchinson.
On June 11, 1955, he married
Anna Louise Belcher at West Plains, Mo. She survives.
Other survivors include: his mother, Edith Tackett, Denver; three daughters, Debra Burnett, South Hutchinson, Linda Millet, Hutchinson, and Chris LaSalvia, Centerville, Ohio; five grandchildren; five great-grandchildren; 10 step-great-grandchildren; and a step-great-great-grandchild.
He was preceded in death by his father; a son, John Wayne; and a grandson, Andrew Fisher.
Funeral will be at 11 a.m. Thursday at South Hutchinson Mennonite Church, South Hutchinson, with Pastor Howard Wagler presiding. Honorary pallbearers will be Larry Burnett Jr., Jerry Burnett, Gene Millet, Jim LaSalvia and Bill Goodenough. Inurnment will be in Fairlawn Cemetery, Hutchinson.
