U.S., Obituary Collection, 1930-Current
Pauline Irwin
Pauline E. Irwin, 84, of Grand Island died Friday, May 8, 1998, at St. Francis Medical Center in Grand Island.
Services will be at 2 p.m. Tuesday at the Ravenna Methodist Church in Ravenna with the Rev. Arnold Kramer officiating. Burial will be in the Highland Park cemetery in Ravenna.
Visitation will be from 7 to 8 p.m. Monday at Rasmussen Mortuary in Ravenna.
Memorials are suggested to the church or the Ravenna Historical Center.
Mrs. Irwin was born on Jan. 21, 1914, at Broken Bow to Horace and Millie (Evenson) Welch. The family moved to Ravenna when she was 8 months old. She was educated in Ravenna and graduated from Ravenna High School in 1931.
She married
Robert H. "Jimmy" Irwin on July 2, 1936, in Kearney. She continued to make her home in Ravenna until 1994, when she moved to the Regency Retirement Complex in Grand Island.
She was a member of the Ravenna Methodist Church, past matron of Rose Croix Chapter 298 Order of the Eastern Star, Nifty Uniques Extension Club, Ravenna Women's Club, Ravenna Railroad Association, Red Cross, Girl Scouts and many other community service organizations.
Survivors include one daughter, Roberta (Mrs. Kent) Wilke of Grand Island.
She was preceded in death by her husband and a sister, Marguerite Welch.
Mary Placke
Mary A. Placke, 87, of Riverside Lodge died Friday, May 8, 1998, at St. Francis Medical Center, as the result of a car accident near St. Libory.
Services will be at 10:30 a.m. Monday at Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church. The Rev. Don Larmore will officiate. Burial will be in Westlawn Memorial Park Cemetery.
Visitation will be from 3 to 7 p.m. Sunday, with a Scripture rosary at 7 p.m. at the church. The family will receive friends from 3 to 5 p.m. Sunday at the church. A Court Queen of Peace Catholic Daughters rosary will be at 6 p.m. Sunday at the church.
Memorials are suggested to the family.
Kleine Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Mrs. Placke was born on March 10, 1911, at Central City to Patrick E. and Mary Ann (Heaton) Powell. She grew up in the Central City area and graduated from Chapman High School. She attended Nebraska Central College in Central City and later graduated from Kearney State College with a teaching certificate.
She married
Sylvester Placke on June 8, 1937, at Central City. They farmed the Placke Homestead near St. Libory, before coming to Grand Island in 1958. She taught for three years in Merrick County and two years in Howard County. She retired after 15 years of teaching at Blessed Sacrament Grade School.
Mr. Placke died in March 1983.
She was a member of Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church, its Altar Society, Court Queen of Peace Catholic Daughters No. 2227 and Christian Mothers.
Survivors include one son, Robert of Kearney; 12 grandchildren; and 12 great-grandchildren.
She was preceded in death by two daughters, Kathleen Whetstone and Patty Vejvoda; and two brothers, John Powell and Henry Powell.
Clifford Barnes
CLARKS -- Clifford F. Barnes, 83, of Clarks died Friday, May 8, 1998, at Memorial Community Care in Aurora.
Services will be at 1:30 p.m. Monday at the United Methodist Church in Clarks with the Rev. LaQuita McKibbin officiating. Burial will be in the Pierce Chapel Cemetery.
Visitation will be from 4 to 7 p.m. Sunday at Solt Funeral Home in Central City.
Memorials are suggested to the church.
Mr. Barnes was born on June 21, 1914, in Brazil Mills to Carl and Grace (Johnson) Barnes. He was educated at rural Merrick County School and Central City High School. After completing school, he worked on the Peterson Brothers Ranch in Hyannis.
He married
Irene S. Botker on Feb. 19, 1938, in Fairbury. They farmed and raised cattle in the Clarks area for 60 years.
He was a member of the Friends Church in Central City. After his marriage, he attended the United Methodist Church in Clarks. He served on the Clarks school board and was interested in education and children in the Clarks community. He served as a school bus driver for many years and was known as "Uncle Cliff" by the students.
In his later years, he enjoyed fishing and took frequent fishing trips to Minnesota.
He is survived by his wife of Clarks; three sisters, Doris (Mrs. Harold) Wimp of Milford; Phyllis (Mrs. Lee) Huston of Central City; and Vera (Mrs. Harry) Young of Longview, Wash.
He was preceded in death by four brothers: Lyle, Don, Lawrence and an infant, Faye; and one sister, Mildred McClure.
'Pete' Thorton
LOUP CITY -- Wesley "Pete" W. Thorton, 80, of Livingston, Texas, formerly of Loup City, died Wednesday, May 6, 1998, at a Livingston nursing home.
Services will be at 10:30 a.m. Friday at the United Methodist Church in Loup City with burial in the Evergreen Cemetery. Memorial services were held Saturday in Livingston.
Memorials are suggested to the SKP Care Center in Livingston.
Mr. Thorton was born on June 7, 1917, to Walter A. and Jessie (Pray) Thornton. He graduated from Loup City High School in 1936.
He married
Lily Kuhl on July 13, 1941. Six months later, he was inducted into the U.S. Army at Leavenworth, Kan. His service time was spent in Abilene, Texas; New Orleans, La.; and Lido, India. He was discharged at Denver, Colo., in February 1946.
He then worked as a meat cutter in a grocery store until 1951, when he and his family moved to Omaha. While living there, he was employed in different phases of the home construction industry until his retirement in December 1982. Since then, he and his wife had traveled in RVs to all states expect Alaska and Hawaii. They also traveled to Canada and Mexico.
Because of his health, the couple made their home at Livingston since 1996, at the SKP Care Center.
Survivors include his wife of Livingston; his son, Lyle of Midland, Texas; two daughters, Karen (Mrs. Richard) Rosenberg of Brimfield, Ill. and Ellen (Mrs. Frank) Jackson of Lansing, Mich.; seven grandchildren; a sister, Minnie (Mrs. Charles) Weskirchen of Omaha; and one brother, James of Oklahoma.
He was preceded in death by three brothers, Clyde, William and Lloyd.
Mary Voskamp
ALBION -- Mary H. Voskamp, 89, of Albion died Saturday, May 9, 1998, at the Wolf Memorial Good Samaritan Home in Albion.
Services will be at 2 p.m. Tuesday at the Levander Funeral Home in Albion with Rev. Vernon Knight officiating. Burial will be in the Rose Hill cemetery in Albion.
Visitation will be from 3 to 8 p.m. Monday at the funeral home.
Royle 'Doc' Cunningham
EUGENE, Ore. -- Royle R. "Doc" Cunningham, 92, of Eugene, Ore., formerly of Grand Island, died Tuesday, May 5, 1998, of complications from cancer.
Mr. Cunningham was cremated. A memorial service will be at a later date at First Christian Church in Grand Island.
Memorials are suggested to the youth group of First Christian Church in his memory.
The Musgrove Family Funeral Home in Eugene, Ore., is in charge of arrangements.
Mr. Cunningham was born on Dec. 15, 1905, to William and Balsa Cunningham in Genoa. In 1912, the Cunningham family moved to Grand Island where he completed his public education.
After high school, he attended the First Baptist College located in Grand Island. He then attended Temple University in Philadelphia, Pa., for medical training. Upon completion in 1931, he moved back to Grand Island and began his podiatry career, which spanned 66 years.
He married
Lucille Carolyn Smith in June 1940. He served as a medic at Wright Patterson Air Force Base located in Dayton, Ohio, during World War II. The couple had been married
56 years at the time of his wife's death.
Due to poor health, he closed his practice in September 1997 and moved to Eugene, Ore., to be with his son.
He enjoyed coin collecting, bell collecting and was an avid rockhound/lapidarist.
He was a member of the local American Legion, the Masonic Lodge and was an active member of the First Christian Church.
Survivors include his son, Bob of Eugene, Ore., and two grandchildren.
