Obituaries
Lela M. Mier
OSWEGO — Lela M. Mier was called to be with her Lord on Sunday, Jan. 6, 2013. She was 106 years young. Mrs. Mier was born on Oct. 19, 1906, to William Horace Doores and Mollie Grant (Fitts) in Bluejacket, Okla., which was still Indian Territory (Oklahoma became a state the following year). She married Ray Nollner Edmonds on Aug. 1, 1925, at Vinita, Okla. They moved to Oswego and had four children before Ray died in 1935 as the result of an acc...
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Ruth C. Wehlage
ERIE — Ruth C. Wehlage, 83, of Erie died at 1:40 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 5, 2013, at Freeman West Hospital in Joplin. She was born on July 23, 1929, at St. Paul to John Michael and Catherine Mae (Thomas) Schoenhofer. She grew up there and attended local schools, graduating from St. Francis High School. After graduating from high school, she worked at the Kansas Ordnance Plant in Parsons and for Hallmark Card Co. in Kansas City. On June 7, 1952...
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Linda Kay Lee
OSWEGO — Linda Kay Lee, 60, of Oswego died suddenly Friday, Jan. 4, 2013, at her home. She was born on April 8, 1952, in Pampa, Texas, to James L. and Dorothy I. (Burton) Chase. She had lived in Oswego since 1980, moving from Wamego. She had worked as a schoolteacher for the Paola school system. She also had worked at the Wellness Center, Parsons. She was employed with General Services Corp., Oswego. She enjoyed animals and flowers, virtually ...
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Ray Aikins
LaHARPE — Ray Aikins, 87, of LaHarpe died on Saturday, Jan. 5, 2013, at his residence. He was born on Sept. 30, 1925, at South Mound to Oliver and Anna (Beecher) Aikins. When Ray was young, he and his family moved to a farm near Shaw, and he attended South Valley School. He married Zana Neagle on June 29, 1945, in Girard. To this union, his children were born. They later divorced. On Feb. 5, 1982, he married Helen Christy in Miami, Okla. She ...
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Cleora Belle (Beebe) Mabie
PARK CITY — Cleora Belle (Beebe) Mabie, 89, of Park City died on Friday, Jan. 4, 2013, at Presbyterian Manor in Newton. She was born on Dec. 31, 1923, in Ellsworth County to Ernest and Belle (Alcorn) Beebe. She grew up on the family farm in Ellsworth County until the family moved to the Geneva area. In 1941, she married Jesse C. Mabie, and they made their home in Parsons until 1980. She moved to Fallbrook, Calif., for several years before movi...
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Demple L. Kastler
ALTAMONT — Demple L. Kastler, 95, of Altamont died at 11:50 a.m. Friday, Jan. 4, 2013, at Parsons Good Samaritan Society. She was born on April 12, 1917, in rural Craig County, Okla., to Harry and Nettie (Jackman) Howe. She grew up in rural Oklahoma, graduating from Centralia High School in Centralia, Okla., in 1936.  She married Chester Kastler on Nov. 23, 1938, in Vinita, Okla. They made their home near Valeda for many years. After raising t...
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Hornets beat Jets on road
BUFFALO — The Chetopa High School boys basketball team used a strong second half here Friday night to take a road win from Altoona-Midway 59-47. Altoona had a 14-9 lead after the first quarter and built that up to 27-20 at halftime. Chetopa boys Coach Dennis Orns said the Green Hornets were a little cool on offense in the first half and relied on the long ball rather than working the ball into post players. The Jets took advantage of this situ...
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Ray E. Wachs
COFFEYVILLE — Ray E. Wachs, 88, of Coffeyville died at midnight Tuesday, Jan. 3, 2013, at his home in Coffeyville. He had been in failing health. He is survived by his wife, Arlene, of the home. The service will be at 10 a.m. Friday at First St. John Lutheran Church in Kensington. Burial will follow in Germantown Cemetery in Kensington. Friends may call from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Wednesday at Forbes-Hoffman Funeral Home. Memorials are suggested to...
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Harold D. ‘Bus’ Williams
CHETOPA — Harold D. “Bus” Williams, 75, of Chetopa died at 1:07 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 2, 2013, at St. Francis Medical Center in Tulsa. He was born on Aug. 24, 1937, in Cherokee County to William Cleburn Williams and Mary Jewel (Holden) Williams. He attended rural Cherokee County schools during grade school and graduated from Columbus High School in 1955. He worked at Boeing in Wichita from 1956 to 1961. Throughout most of his adult life, he had...
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Margaret Ellen (Hayes) Cooper
EDNA — Margaret Ellen (Hayes) Cooper, 90, of Edna died at 2:55 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 3, 2013, at Windsor Place nursing home in Coffeyville, where she had been a resident since Aug. 9, 2000.  She was born on Sept. 14, 1922, to Frank and Mabel (Goodwin) Hayes at the family farm near Edna. She attended Edna Grade School and graduated in May 1940 from Edna High School. She had always planned to teach elementary school and taught for a time at Hawkin...
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Demple L. Kastler
ALTAMONT — Demple L. Kastler, 95, of Altamont died at 11:50 a.m. Friday, Jan. 4, 2013, at Good Samaritan Society in Parsons. Her husband, Chester, preceded her in death in December 1986. The service will be at 10:30 a.m. Tuesday at First Baptist Church in Edna. Burial will follow at North Edna Cemetery. The family will receive friends from 6 to 8 p.m. Monday at the church. Memorials are suggested to Gideon’s International, the Good Samaritan S...
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Nina Mae Neth
JOPLIN — Nina Mae Neth, 87, of Joplin died at 11:50 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 29, 2012, at National Healthcare Center in Joplin following a lengthy illness. She was born on July 26, 1925, in Follett, Texas. She was a homemaker. Survivors include a daughter, Sharon Miller and her husband, Richard, of Joplin; a brother, Harold Linscott of Wichita; two grandsons, Jeremy L. Miller and his wife, Gina, of Parsons and Jeffrey A. Miller of Joplin; and two g...
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Jack D. Armstrong
GALENA — Jack D. Armstrong, 83, of Galena departed this life Jan. 1, 2013, at 2:20 a.m., with his two eldest grandsons by his side. He had been in ill health for several months. He was born on Dec. 21, 1929, in Wichita to Floyd and Grace Armstrong. He lived his entire life in Kansas, going to school in Fredonia and Coyville. He lived in Coffeyville as a young man, where he met his wife Marie Cook. They were married May 5, 1948. To this union, ...
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Barbara Jo Evans
CHETOPA — Barbara Jo Evans, 84, of Chetopa died at 11:30 a.m. Wednesday, Jan. 2, 2013, at Integris Baptist Medical Center in Miami, Okla. She was born on May 28, 1928 in rural Columbus to Barnet and Finita (Harrison) Hale. She attended rural Cherokee County elementary schools and graduated from Columbus High School in 1945. She taught art classes in Chetopa and various places in Labette County through Labette Community College as well as assis...
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Harold D. Williams
CHETOPA — Harold D. Williams, 75, of Chetopa died at 1 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 2, 2013, at St. Francis Medical Center in Tulsa. His wife, Carrie, s
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Barbara Jo Evans
CHETOPA — Barbara Jo Evans, 84, of Chetopa died at 11:30 a.m. Wednesday, Jan. 2, 2013, at Integris Baptist Medical Center in Miami, Okla. She was preceded in death by her husband, Arthur “Robert” Evans, in 2007. The service will be at 2 p.m. Monday at Bath-Forbes-Hoffman Funeral Home in Chetopa. Burial will follow at Fairview Cemetery. The family will receive friends at the funeral home from 1 p.m. until service time on Monday. The funeral ho...
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Richard D. ‘Gonzo’ Sublett
COLUMBUS — Richard D. “Gonzo” Sublett, 36, formerly of Parsons, died at his home in Columbus early Thursday morning, Dec. 27, 2012. He had been in his usual health, and death was unexpected. He was born on May 30, 1976, at Stillwater, Okla., to Ronald and Donna (Johnson) Sublett. He grew up and attended school in various areas before moving to Tulsa with his family. He worked for Walmart as a maintenance worker. He married Pamela C. Rogers on ...
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Robert Eugene Coomes
FRONTENAC — Robert Eugene Coomes, 80, of Frontenac died at 7:35 a.m. Monday, Dec. 31, 2012, at Via Christi Hospital, Pittsburg, following a short illness. He was born on Dec. 30, 1932, in St. Paul to Ray and Cora (Brazil) Coomes. On March 2, 1962, he married Roberta Jean Witty in Miami, Okla. She survives of the home. Bob was a general contractor and was the owner and operator of Coomes Construction and Coomes Self Storage. He was a longtime F...
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Morris Burton Chambers
PUEBLO, Colo. – Morris Burton Chambers, 83, passed away peacefully on Wednesday, Dec. 26, 2012. He was born on Dec. 6, 1929, at Fort Scott to Warren and Frances (Crabb) Chambers. They lived in Hepler before moving to Girard in 1946. He graduated from Girard High School. He attended Pittsburg State Teachers College (PSU) until the Korean War began. Enlisting in the Air Force, he was trained in cryptography and served mostly in Nigata, Japan. ...
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Leona 'June' Horn
TOPEKA — Leona ”June” Horn, 79, died Saturday, Dec. 29, 2012, at the University of Kansas Medical Center in Kansas City, Kan., where she was surrounded by her loving family. She was born Nov. 13, 1933, on the family farmstead in rural Labette County to Issac William and Florence Leona (Cunningham) Strickland. She graduated from Labette County High School in Altamont. She married Billy Dean Horn in Picher, Okla., on Aug. 18, 1951.  To this 61 ...
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